


I know you wanna go higher

by orphan_account



Category: Mortal Instruments Series - Cassandra Clare, Shadowhunters (TV)
Genre: 10 Things I Hate About You AU, Angst, F/M, Humor, M/M, but in the future, just a warning, mundane AU, the characters' looks are based on the tv show
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-02-28
Updated: 2016-05-17
Packaged: 2018-05-23 19:34:46
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 8
Words: 21,170
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6127808
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The first thing Simon Lewis saw when he arrived Idris High School was the most beautiful girl he had ever seen.  However, he later discovered that if he wanted to date her, he would need to get a date for his grumpy brother, Alec. And that's where Magnus Bane appears.</p><p>The 10 Things I Hate About You AU that every fandom needs. Simon is new and pining for Isabelle, and then he has the worst idea of his life. Somehow, things work out. Kind of.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Prologue

**Author's Note:**

> As always, sorry if there any grammar mistakes! English is not my first language and this is unbeta'd.  
> Okay I've been wanting to write a 10TIHAY for ages so I'm excited and I hope you like it.

The first thing Simon Lewis saw when he arrived Idris High School was the most beautiful girl he had ever seen. She was tall, had long, wavy, black ink hair, and was wearing incredibly high heels.

“Simon?”, asked Clary, the petite redhead who had been assigned to show him around. Following his gaze, he saw Isabelle, talking to a big group of people. “No way.”

“No way what?”, said Simon, suddenly offended. “Just because she’s a pretty popular girl doesn’t mean I can’t-”

“That’s not the thing,” answered Clary quickly, cutting him off. “She’s not allowed to date.”

Clary noticed how Simon’s expression changed drastically. His face was halfway between a big frown and a grimace, and he blinked a few times.

“Not allowed to date? It’s 2016.” How could a teenager not be allowed to date? That was just stupid.

“Her parents are very conservative,” Clary shrugged. “She’s not allowed to date until his older brother dates, and that’s… unlikely.”

“But how old is she?” Simon asked, afraid she was, like, 14 and starting to feel sick.

“She’s a somophore, she’s in my class, but like I said, that’s just the way her parents are. Not cool.”

“How do you know all that?,” asked Simon, still frowning. Did everyone know that? It seemed like a personal thing, he didn’t think anyone would be telling the whole high school their stuck-on-the-18th-century parents wouldn’t let them date until their older sibling did. That just seemed illogical.

“Because I’m dating one of her brothers. Her adoptive brother. The one who needs to date is the biological one, Jace kind of can do whatever the hell he wants, the Lightwoods are only harsh on their blood children.”

“I don’t see where’s the big problem. We just get that brother a date, a nice girl-”

“Alec is hella gay, you know. Cut the heteronormativity,” Clary said, elbowing him playfully on his ribs.

“Then a nice  _ boy _ , and he takes him out, and I take out the love of my life. Ain’t that wonderful?”, he asked, already planning on his head what he would do for their first date. He discarded the movies quickly, he wanted to get to know her. Maybe dinner?

He was drawn to Earth again when Clary snorted, making a few people on the hallway to look at her cared.

“Just wait until you meet Alec. There’s no one who would willingly go through that torture just so you can date Izzy.”

####  *~*~*

Clary was right, Simon decided after having lunch with Clary and the Lightwoods that day. Alec wasn’t exactly boyfriends goals, and there was no way he would convince anyone to go out with him and put up with all the rolling eyes and mean comments.

“What am I gonna do?”, he said, staring at Isabelle. He was talking to some long haired boy who was getting into her personal space, and Simon was  _ jealous _ . “Who’s that?”

Clary, who was getting something from her locker, looked at where her friend stood, and said “Oh, that’s Meliorn. He’s been trying to get Izzy to go out with him all summer, he’s kind of an ass, you know. But a very rich one.”

Simon leant against the lockers behind him and closed his eyes, rubbing his temples. There had to be something he could do, right? He was Simon Lewis, and the Lewis never gave up. He just hadn’t put enough thought to it. As if finding someone who could date Alec was enough, now there was also that stupid Meliorn trying to be with Isabelle. So many problems and it was just his first day as a junior in that crazy school, he was starting to feel as if his life was a movie.

Suddenly, something dangerous crossed his mind.

“I swear I’ve just seen a lightbulb turn on over your head,” Clary said, crossing her arms over her chest and looking at him with a raised eyebrow.

“I’ve just had the worst idea ever. I’m just missing one piece,” Simon exclaimed, excited. He had a plan, and having a plan made him happy. “I just need someone who doesn’t give a flying fuck.”

“I think I know the perfect person for that,” she said, smiling widely.

####  *~*~*

“Alright, biscuit, just tell me if I got it right,” Magnus said, still confused. “Your friend Sheldon here wants Meliorn to pay me to go out with Alexander Lightwood, so that Meliorn guy thinks he’s gonna be able to go out with Isabelle Lightwood, when she’s actually going out with you?”

“Yes,” said Clary, clearly excited. 

“Dating the golden boy has caused you some serious brain damage”, he shrugged, lifting his hand to play with one of his ear piercings. “There’s no way this is going to work. And how do  _ you _ plan to date Isabelle? Have you seen her?”

“Hey!” Simon exclaimed, offended. “That’s none of your business, I’ll take care of it. Why haven’t you agreed yet? You’re getting paid.”

“And I know you think Alec is hot,” said Clary distractedly, playing with a lock of red hair.

“Because he is hot. He’s the hottest out of the Lightwoods, you’re just so blinded by the non-hot ones’ boldness you can’t see the good stuff,” Magnus said, a smile appearing on his face.

“I honestly thought it would be harder to convince Meliorn that convincing you, you know,” Simon sighed.

The whole situation made him Magnus want to laugh because it was plainly ridiculous. He was not sure if Clary and her friend were actually listening to themselves as they spoke, but they weren’t making any sense. Alec Lightwood was a senior who had been out since he was 15, and in that three years he had never had  _ anything _ with anyone. At least, not that the rest of the school knew about. Besides, there was no way that serious Alexander Lightwood would go out with sparkly Magnus Bane. Besides, he was too lazy to think about something big, and if he was going to ask Alexander he would do it on his own magnificent way. Magnus didn’t do stuff halfway.

However, Magnus Bane wasn’t a big fan of Alec, of any of the Lightwoods, for that matter. They were prepotent and obnoxious, too full of themselves, always thinking they were the royalty, better than everyone else—or at least that’s the vibe Jace radiated. Alec just seemed so indifferent to everything, as if the world was too  _ mundane _ to him it was even painful. The only Lightwood he would like was Isabelle, because  instead of full of herself and prepotent she was confident, and she was one of the nicest and most passionate people on the school.

But if there’s something everybody knew about Magnus Bane, it’s that he was a big fan of challenges. 

“Okay,” he finally said. “I’m doing this for you, Sherwin.”


	2. I

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Alec’s face changed drastically, and a proud feeling appeared deep down in Magnus’ chest, because it was the first time he had seen Alec react like that to anything, really. Usually he was all rolling eyes and raising judgemental eyebrows, but at that moment his face looked both confused, surprised, and- wait, was that a hint of happiness what Magnus saw?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sooo, here's the first chapter. I know it's short, but the following will be longer! Thanks to everyone for reading! Love you all <3  
> Also, thanks to emylisis for betaing.

Magnus was waiting for Alec in the boy’s locker when he spotted Isabelle Lightwood talking to Meliorn (who was wearing a hideous hawaiian shirt).

 _Poor Sheldon_ , he thought to himself.

He was playing Kim Kardashian’s game when he heard someone clear his throat, which made him raise his gaze slowly. Ah, there he was. The ice king, everyone. Magnus raised his eyebrows questioningly at him.

“Um, you’re standing in front of my locker and I, uh, need to pick up my stuff,” Alec said.

“I know, darling. I wanted to talk to you.”

“Uh?,” he stuttered, looking surprised. “With me? Why?”

“Don’t look so surprised, Alexander,” Magnus said, a feline smile spreading across his face. “How do you feel about going out with me?”

Alec’s face changed drastically, and a proud feeling appeared deep down in Magnus’ chest, because it was the first time he had seen Alec react like that to anything, really. Usually he was all rolling eyes and raising judgemental eyebrows, but at that moment his face looked both confused, surprised, and- wait, was that a hint of happiness what Magnus saw?

“I don’t think so, Magnus,” Alec said carefully.

“Are you playing hard to get?”, Magnus purred playfully. “Because I love a challenge.”

Alec’s cheeks turned a soft shade of pink and Magnus smiled again, satisfied. He wouldn’t give up so easily.

“I’m not!” he snapped. “The answer is just no.”

“But why?” asked Magnus, pouting. Alec returned his look, but he was frowning and had a desperate look on his face. “Don’t you want to?”

“It’s not like that! But, I, uh… I…” Magnus raised his eyebrows again, impatiently. He would had never imagined Alec was such a big stutterer. He noticed Alec’s cheeks go from soft pink to bright red, and then he blurted “Because I’ve never dated anyone and I’m probably going to fuck it up.”

Now it was Magnus’ turn to be surprised. He had figured Alec had never dated anyone, the entire school had, but he wasn’t expecting Alec to get so worked up about disappointing anyone, and especially disappointing _him_ , out of all people.

“There has to be a first time for everything, right?” He said, starting to leave. “There’s a party at Ragnor’s this Friday. I’ll pick you up, we can discuss the hour later.”

Alec looked conflicted. His lips were barely a thin line and his brows were furrowed. “I can’t. Sorry, Magnus.”

Magnus got out of the way, and as he was leaving the hallway, he said, without turning around “You never said you didn’t want to.”

* * *

 

The following day Magnus went to school an hour earlier than usual, excited and with a plan. There were a few things he knew about Alec Lightwood after four years in his class, and one of them was that he was always the first to get to class, he arrived even before the teacher. So, along with Ragnor, Raphael and Catarina, Magnus went to the classroom both he and Alec had first period on and started to inflate balloons. Raphael had been the only intelligent person who had brought a compressor, so while he comfortably inflated the balloons, the rest of them killed their lungs. They were quick, though, because when the time came Magnus was alone on a classroom full of so many balloons they reached his waist, holding a sign that read ‘ _Date on Friday?’_. And he couldn’t move because after the hell that was inflating them all, he refused to burst any of the balloons. He waited for what felt like hours while his friends stood guard in the corridor, making sure no one got in there before Alec. When the door opened, Magnus felt his stomach tighten with excitement.

Alec was standing on the door frame, now surrounded by balloons, and behind him a few curious students eyed the classroom, laughing.

“What the hell is this?” he asked, looking around him in disbelief.

Magnus cleared his throat and Alec looked at him, for the first time noticing the sign Magnus was holding.

“I told you I loved a challenge, didn’t I?” said Magnus.

A nervous smirk appeared on Alec’s mouth, and his eyebrows raised.

“You can't take no for an answer, can you?” he said as he carefully started to make his way towards Magnus, trying to not step on any balloon.

“What can I say, I’m persistent,” he answered.

 

Alec stepped on a balloon, that exploded with a loud noise and made Alec cringe. Magnus couldn’t help but laugh, and when the boy was close enough, he reached for him, brushing his fingertips against Alec’s wrist. When he didn’t pull away, Magnus grabbed his wrist and pulled him closer. “Is that a yes?”

“Yes, Magnus. It’s a yes,” said Alec, a hopeful look on his face.

 

* * *

Isabelle was on her way to the parking lot to meet her brothers when she heard someone calling her.

“Isabelle!” She turned around and saw Clary’s new friend jogging through the hallway until he got to her.

“Hey! What’s up, Simon?”

“Remember how yesterday you asked me to show you some music? Like, the music I did with my old band back at Chicago,” he asked, nervously glancing down.

“I do,” she chuckled. “Indie rock, wasn’t it?”

Simon’s nervous smile turned into a real, wide one.

“Yeah, exactly.” He reached into his jacket’s pocket and took a USB, handing it to Isabelle. “Here, take this. Here’s some of our original work as well as some covers. If you don’t like it just throw it away or something, I don’t want it back, I’ve got dozens.”

Isabelle laughed, because she was a smart girl and knew the effect she had on people, and Simon was very cute and endearing. And, maybe, when she took the USB from Simon’s hand and let her fingertips linger on the skin for more time than was necessary, it was on purpose.

“I’m sure I’ll love it,” she said with a big smile, tucking the USB into her bag. “I’ve gotta go now, Alec and Jace are waiting for me. I’ll see you around.”

She turned around and started to make her way to the high school doors when she heard Simon muttering “Goodbye, Isabelle.”

When she got to the parking lot, both Jace and Alec were already inside of the car, waiting for her.

“Hallelujah!” exclaimed Jace from the driver’s seat. Alec was usually the one who drove, but since Jace had gotten his license he insisted on driving, and they let him, because he could be a pain in the ass when he didn’t get what he wanted. “Where have you been?”

“I was talking to Simon,” she said, putting on her seatbelt. “Don’t you think he’s kinda cute?”

“No,” replied the two boys at the same time. Izzy rolled her eyes.

“Alec has big news for you, don’t you, Alec?” said Jace suddenly, turning on the engine.

“Huh?” asked Isabelle. “What is it?”

“Please,” begged Alec. “Don’t scream or do anything annoying since we’re on a small space.” He turned around and saw Isabelle nodding quietly. “I’m going on a date this Friday.”

“You are _WHAT_?!” She yelled. Alec? On a date? This couldn’t be possibly happening. “With who?”

Alec was frowning. “You said you wouldn’t scream.”

“You’re a traitor now, Iz,” said Jace distractedly as his fingers tapped the steering wheel, following the music’s rhythm. “You can’t be trusted anymore.”

“I’m going out with Magnus Bane,” blurted Alec suddenly.

“ _The_ Magnus Bane asked you out for your first date ever? Go big or go home, big bro.” Isabelle was happy that her brother had finally decided to get out there, because she was sure the reason he had not dated anyone was that he was not completely over his stupid crush on Jace. “And where is he taking you?”

“We’re going to a party at Ragnor’s.”

Isabelle’s eyes lit up. She knew that if her brother dated, she would be allowed to as well. So, if her brother was allowed to go to _one of the greatest parties of the school year_ and to bring a date to it, she would be able to do the same thing right?

She was already making plans.

“And why didn’t you tell me at lunch?” she complained. She noticed then the purple balloon next to her on the backseat. “And where did that come from?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you liked this one! As always, kudos, bookmars and comments are always welcome. Thanks for reading!


	3. II

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> He was halfway through the second Sense8 episode of the afternoon when the doorbell rang. Sighing, he paused the episode and made his way to the front door, still barefoot. When Alec opened his door, his mouth fell open.  
> “What are you doing here?” he choked out.  
> “‘Oh, hi, Magnus, would you like to come in?’ Sure, Alexander! You’re such a nice host!” exclaimed Magnus.

Alec liked quiet afternoons at home, watching Netflix and avoiding the hurricane that Isabelle and Jace were. Usually, Max stayed with him, but today he was over at a friend’s house, so he was the only one at home.

He didn’t want to think about what had happened the last couple of days, because he knew he would end up obsessing about everything. First, Simon, Clary’s new friend, had apparently joined their group of friends, then Magnus Bane had asked him out _twice_ , and above everything else Isabelle had started to hang out with that Meliorn boy, who was annoying as hell.It wasn’t like Alec didn’t like Simon or Magnus- he definitely disliked Meliorn, though-, he just didn’t like changes, and there were definitely a few big ones going on at the moment.

He was halfway through the second Sense8 episode of the afternoon when the doorbell rang. Sighing, he paused the episode and made his way to the front door, still barefoot. When Alec opened his door, his mouth fell open.

“What are you doing here?” he choked out.

“‘Oh, hi, Magnus, would you like to come in?’ Sure, Alexander! You’re such a nice host!” exclaimed Magnus, dramatically gesturing with his hands as he spoke. Alec decided to ignore him.

“How did you know where I lived?” asked Alec, suddenly feeling uneasy. Alright, he had known the boy for four years now, and was almost sure he was no stalker, but maybe Magnus had a dark side no one at the school knew about. He was hoping that was not the case, because that would probably put him and his family in danger. There was also a part of his mind that didn’t want Magnus to be a creep because he was really looking forward to Friday night, but he wasn’t going to allow himself to listen to it.

Then Alec remembered that not everyone got all paranoid when cute boys from their school showed at their doorstep.

“Isabelle,” Magnus said. That, thought Alec, made a lot of sense.

Suddenly, Alec started to feel embarrassed for the way he had reacted. Magnus was obviously not a stalker, and he was a loser. Feeling his cheeks burn, he tried to clean up the mess he had made.

“So, uh,” said Alec, staring at his feet. “Do you want to come in?”

“Only if you’re inviting me because you want me to come in,” Magnus replied. Alec raised his gaze and saw Magnus looking at him, a concerned expression on his face.

Alec felt something twitch inside his chest, and he bit his lip in an attempt to hide the tiny, nervous smile on his mouth.

“I want you to,” he said slowly, watching Magnus’ eyes light up.

While he guided Magnus to the living room it occurred to Alec that, since they barely knew each other, things might get awkward. Maybe they’d run out of conversation topics and Magnus would think he was boring, or maybe he’d—

_Stop picturing every single way things could go wrong_ , he reminded himself.

They sat on the couch, and even though they weren’t _that_ close, Alec tensed every time one of them moved. Maybe the fact that Magnus was just quietly staring at him, his head resting on his hand and his elbow on top of the back of the sofa, contributed to make him nervous.

“I’m here,” he said after what felt like hours but were probably seconds, “because I don’t want things to be uncomfortable tomorrow. I thought it might be a good idea to get to know each other a bit better before.”

Alec nodded. “Yeah, that seems like a good idea.”

“So, Alexander,” said Magnus, slightly leaning towards the blue-eyed boy. “Tell me something about yourself.”

Alec shrugged. He was really bad about talking about himself, because he never knew if people would actually care about what he told them. “Well, I don’t know, I want to go to university, become and lawyer, and—”

“But I already know that,” Magnus protested. “You’ve said it before in class. I want you to tell me something that only your friends and family know.”

Alec remained silent, so Magnus spoke again.

“Alright, I’ll go first,” he said, excited. “I just know the perfect story. This, dear Alec, is why I’m banned from Peru.”

Alec listened to Magnus’ story closely, trying not to miss any details. He was mesmerized by the way Magnus’ lips moved and how his eyes lit up when he mentioned Ragnor and Catarina, showing the immense love Magnus felt for them. The way his hands moved as he vehemently gestured. He frowned at the especially embarrassing or disgusting parts of the story, and laughed when the funny ones came. Alec, who had never been one for stupid tales, found himself laughing along with Magnus, and oddly endeared by the whole thing. Also, he was a bit ashamed to admit he liked the way Magnus ran a jeweled hand through the spikes of his hair every once in awhile.

“I can’t believe you did that,” he chuckled when Magnus was done. There was a part of him that questioned whether anything Magnus had just told him was true, but he didn’t say anything about it, enjoying the relaxed atmosphere too much. “Alright, my turn. But nothing in my life is as wild as that.”

“I wasn’t expecting it to be. Whatever comes to your mind, darling.”

Alec thought about it for a moment, and then said the first thing about himself he knew Magnus wouldn’t know. “I won the state archery championship six years on a row.”

Magnus’ eyes widened and his mouth fell open “You gotta be shitting me.”

“I’m not!”

“So prove it,” said Magnus, a tiny smirk spreading across his face.

“Follow me,” he said, standing up and walking out of the room.

“Why?” asked Magnus when they reached the stairs.

“Because I’ve got medals in my room to prove it,” replied Alec, turning around to look at Magnus.

“Are you inviting me to your bedroom already? How unexpectedly naughty, Alexander. I like it.” Alec rolled his eyes and turned around quickly, in a failed attempt to hide the blush on his cheeks from Magnus, who was now laughing.

“You’re so unfunny it’s painful,” he said. However, a small smirk Magnus definitely wasn’t going to know about appeared on his face.

When they got to Alec’s room, the blue-eyed boy waved to the wall, where six golden medals hung, bright against the dark wall.

“So you’re like Katniss Everdeen,” Magnus said, running his fingertips over one of the medals, tentatively. Alec shrugged his shoulders, saying nothing. “And don’t you have silver or bronze ones? Go big or go home, huh?”

“Wait a minute,” Alec replied,turning around to look in one of his drawers.

When he finally found what he was looking for, he saw Magnus with his back to him, looking around his bedroom. Magnus’ colourful self looked weird on Alec’s room, all black walls and white furniture, but it didn’t _feel_ strange to have him there.

“You’re really something else, Alexander,” he suddenly said, looking at his host again. Alec didn’t really understand what he meant until he noticed the purple balloon, now way smaller than it had been a few days ago when Alec had brought it to his room, in Magnus’ hands. Alec felt his cheeks get warm.

“I, uh… I like purple,” he stuttered. “I guess.”

Magnus chuckled, and then he looked at the small wooden box Alec was holding. “What’s that?”

Alec sat on the edge of his bed and Magnus mimicked him, their knees brushing. Something in Alec’s chest twitched.

“These,” he said, opening the box. “Are the silver ones. No bronze, sorry to disappoint.” He let a proud grin spread across his face.

Alec wasn’t arrogant or prepotent, he had never been one to be in the spotlight, but when it came to archery he became another person. He never minded having hundreds of eyes focused on him, to be the centre of attention. Not when he had an arrow on his hands. So he let himself be a bit cocky about it, because he knew his eyes lit up when he talked about it, and he was aware of the proud feeling inside of him.

“When did you win all of these?” asked Magnus, amazed.

“These two are from when I was seven and eight,” he said, pointing at the box. ”And the others from nine to fourteen.”

“And why did you quit? Because I’m sure you just don’t go from winning gold six years straight to just winning _nothing,_ ” said Magnus. Alec sighed. “It’s alright if you don’t want to talk about it, you know,” added quickly the Asian.

“No, it’s okay. There’s nothing big about it, you know.” He took a deep breath. “I needed to focus on school and it was a big distraction. Or at least my parents thought so.”

“Oh, darling,” he said, an understanding tone on his voice.

Alec felt a hand squeeze his, and looked at Magnus, who was gazing at him with a tentative expression.

“Is this okay?” he asked. Alec nodded.

To be honest, it was really okay. It was actually much better than okay. Magnus’ hands were warm and Alec liked how his pale fingers looked tangled in Magnus’ darker hands.

“Your hands are cold,” muttered Magnus.

Alec tried to pull his hand away, but Magnus’ grip was firm on his hand. He looked at Magnus, and he saw his golden-green eyes—was that even a thing? Magnus’ eyes were the weirdest Alec had ever seen, but also the prettiest— fixed on his own, and he blushed, looking down at where their hands rested.

“I like your nail polish,” he blurted.

It was one of those things people say to fill silence, not really thinking about them before letting them slip from their lips, but Alec meant it. Magnus’ nails were painted a dark shade of red that reminded him of wine, and Alec swore Isabelle had a lipstick the same colour.

“It’s burgundy,” Magnus said softly, sounding amused.

Magnus gently untangled his hand from Alec’s and started to trace the lines on the boy’s palms with his fingers. The touch tickled Alec, who couldn’t hold back a smile, but it was nice and it felt intimate, and honestly, Alec never thought he could just sit on his bed with a boy and feel so comfortable even though they weren’t really talking about anything.

“Tell me about your family,” Magnus said after a while.

Alec told him every single thing about his siblings he could think of. He told Magnus about the first time he had met Jace, after his father had died and the Lightwoods decided to adopt him. He told him how Isabelle would do anything for any of them, and the way she had stood up for him when he first confronted his parents about his sexuality. And when it came to Max, Alec told Magnus with a big smile on his face how his little brother was already the most observant out of the four of them, and would probably grow up to be the smartest.

Magnus laughed along with him when he told him about how they had learnt about Jace’s fear of ducks, and now they were sitting with their legs crossed on Alec’s carpet, their hands still playing with each other.

“You obviously love them a lot,” Magnus said, a small grin on his face. “What about papa and mama Lightwood?”

Alec sighed. “I love them too, but sometimes…” Alec couldn’t find the words to put it without feeling like a horrible son. “Sometimes they are a bit too hard on us, you know? Especially on Izzy and me. I guess they do it because they want what’s best for us, but sometimes it’s too much pressure.” Alec shook his head, and then asked “What’s your family like?”

Alec was surprised to see Magnus take a deep breath, looking uncomfortable. “There’s just my step-father and me, my mom passed away a few years ago.” Magnus hesitated for a moment, with his mouth open as if he was about to say something more, and Alec realized he had hit a nerve. “I don’t really get along with him. He’s an ass,” he added, his voice low.

Alec could see contained pain on Magnus’ eyes, and he was about to say something when his door flew open and Isabelle appeared on his room.

“Alec, have you seen— oh.” A smile appeared on Isabelle’s face as she put her hands on her hips. “Oh my god, come here, our big brother is holding hands with a boy in his room!”

Alec groaned and covered his face, which he was sure looked red as hell, with his hands. He could hear Jace laughing and running through the corridor, and Magnus’ soft chuckles.

Just when he thought there was no way he could be more embarrassed, he heard another voice.

“Iz, you should have taken a picture,” said Max, standing next to Jace under the frame of the door.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you liked it! I know it's been awhile (sorry about that), but I'm kind of busy with school. So basically this is them bonding yayy.  
> Thanks to everyone who leaves kudos/comments/bookmarks, I appreciate it. Also, special thanks to emylisis for betaing!


	4. III

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Betaed by the always lovely emylisis!

Magnus was sure that when Clary’s funny new friend had planned this whole thing he hadn’t expected Isabelle to choose to go to the party with Meliorn. So now Simon was uncomfortably sitting in the Lightwoods’ car backseat, squeezed between Magnus and the car door.

“You should feel terrible, Sam,” Magnus turned to him with a dramatic spin. “You’re third-wheeling two couples at the same time, how do you do it?”

Jace, who was driving, snorted, and Clary send him a death glare from the co-pilot seat. Magnus wasn’t able to see Alec’s reaction, but he was sure he had heard a choked noise that definitely didn’t come from Sam.

“My name is _Simon_ ”, he repeated for the third time that day. “And I’ll leave you alone when we get to the party, but—”

“Don’t worry about them, Simon. He’s just bitter because he wanted a hot make out session in the backseat with Alec, right, Magnus?” said Clary, looking at the trio and raising her eyebrow.

Alec’s face turned scarlet and Magnus laughed, resting his head on Alec’s shoulder, who tensed up.

“Watch your words, biscuit,” he warned, half-joking and half-serious.

The rest of the ride was just as awkward, and Magnus was thankful that as soon as they got to the party they drifted apart. Okay, maybe Jace wasn’t so terrible after all, but he didn’t need anyone to ruin the night for him, especially since the only way to have a good time at the party would be getting Alec to chill, and that didn’t seem likely to happen.

“I’m gonna go say hi to Ragnor, you want to come?” he asked, half-yelling in Alec’s ear.

The boy shook his head, “I’ll stay here,” he answered. “Don’t be gone for too long.” His face showed he was kind of scared, and Magnus grabbed his hand and squeezed lightly.

“Don’t worry, it won’t even take me five minutes.”

It took Magnus exactly two minutes to find Ragnor, twenty seconds to say hi to him and both Raphael and Catarina and one minute to go back to where he had left Alec. He found Isabelle with Meliorn on his way back, and she told Magnus how excited she was about him dating her brother, and to be patient because Alec wasn’t an easy person. However, although it took Magnus less than five minutes to come back, just as he had promised, Alec wasn’t there.

“ _Fuck_.”

* * *

Alec wasn’t exactly sure how he had jumped to the conclusion that he would be fine on his own, or that drinking whatever the hell was in those red cups would be a good idea, but he had been wandering by himself for about an hour, and was feeling confused. He had found Jace and Clary awhile ago, and when he tried to hug them both he tripped over his own feet and fell on his ass, which was now hurting. While they were helping him get up, they mentioned something about finding Isabelle and a fight with Meliorn, and that made Alec angry.

“What did that idiot do?” Alec yelled, attempting to stand up and failing miserably. “I’m going to kick his ass.”

Both his brother and the redhead offered him their hands, and he got on his feet again. However, everything felt better when he was sitting. The world wasn’t shaking, at least.

“Where is Magnus?” asked Clary, while Jace and her tried to drag Alec to sit somewhere. So now he was being ignored.

“I don’t know, he told me to wait for him and I didn’t because there were so many people and I didn’t like it and then I started drinking and now I want to punch Meliorn,” he blurted, realizing how stupid he had been.

Alec knew it hadn’t been his finest moment, but right now he was feeling both dizzy and angry, and he wanted Jace and Clary to let him go.

Suddenly, he saw a familiar face with a very worried expression, and got up, making his world spin even faster.

“Magnus!” he yelled. “Look, Clary, Jace, I found Magnus!”

The redhead turned around and looked at the boy, who hadn’t heard Alec yell, and went to get him. In the meanwhile, Jace grabbed Alec’s shoulders and made him look him in the eyes.

“Are you sure you’re not gonna do anything stupid if we leave you with Magnus? Don’t do anything Iz and I would do.” Alec nodded, obediently. That wouldn’t be a problem. Even drunk, Alec was aware he was the sensible one and he had a reputation to keep up.

“I’m the smart one,” he said, holding in a hiccup. “I bet I’m also a smart drunk.”

Jace rolled his eyes so hard that Alec was sure his brother had been able to see his own brain.

“Alexander! What the hell were you thinking?” exclaimed Magnus, who had just gotten there. “Is he alright?” he asked, looking at Jace.

“Yes, just a bit drunk,” Jace replied, letting go of Alec’s shoulders. “We’re gonna go look for Iz, things got ugly with Meliorn.”

“Yeah, I saw them fight. But last time I saw her she was with Sheldon, so don’t worry too much.”

Alec was upset everyone _but him_ had been there to stand up for his sister. It was his duty as her big brother, and now Isabelle was probably sad and mad and hanging with that Simon boy, which was a scary thought.

He was so caught up in his thought he didn’t realize Jace and Clary had left, but then he felt someone grab his hand.

“Come on, we’re going to a quieter place,” said Magnus, pulling his arm.

Alec followed him closely, their hands grasped firmly together, trying not to get lost again. The world was spinning around fast, and the only thing that wasn’t moving at high speed was Magnus’ grip on him, so he held onto it. They left Ragnor’s house and Magnus led him to the sidewalk, making him sit down and kneeling beside him.

“Are you alright?” he asked, concern on his face. “Do you feel like throwing up?”

“I’m fine, Magnus,” sighed Alec.

Magnus didn’t say anything, but sat beside Alec on the sidewalk and let the boy rest his head on his shoulder.

“Are you sure, darling? You don’t look okay at all,” he mumbled against Alec’s hair.

“I just...,” he heard Alec swallow loudly, and when he spoke again his voice broke, “I’m a terrible brother. I knew Meliorn was an asshole and yet I let Isabelle go out with him, and now they’ve fought and this night is a mess. And I’m also a terrible date that leaves you alone and gets drunk, so now you’re here stuck with me playing babysitter. I’m a disaster.”

Alec lifted his head from Magnus’ shoulder and buried his face in his hands. It was embarrassing enough that he had told him, he just didn’t want to see the compassion on his face.

He felt Magnus’ arm around his waist, making his breath catch. Magnus was touchy, and Alec had never liked touchy people, but the thing with Magnus was that he knew _exactly_ when to touch him. He didn’t make him feel uncomfortable, every single one of his touches unchained a very embarrassing and irrational reaction in Alec that he couldn’t control, but he liked it anyway.

“Look at me, Alexander,” said Magnus adamantly. There was something on Magnus’ tone that made Alec look at him, only to see his hardened expression. “You can’t be there to save your sister every time she gets in trouble, you have to live your own life. Besides, she’s old enough to take care of herself, you know.”

Alec sighed, looking at the ground. He then felt Magnus’ knuckles brushing against his own, and felt the need to hold his hand, just like they had done in his bedroom just a day ago.

“I would date you again, you know,” Magnus muttered. “Perfect dates are boring, this was an exciting one. I had fun looking for you, it was like playing hide and seek.”

Alec laughed softly and lifted his gaze, looking at Magnus’ eyes.

“Don’t be a liar,” he said, smiling. “I know you love parties and I also know I ruined this one for you.”

Magnus shook his head, chuckling.

“So what do you want to be, Magnus Bane?” Alec asked. Magnus looked confused, and quickly Alec said, “I want to be many things. I want to be a good brother, I want to be useful, and I want to be a superhero.”

“A superhero? It suits you,” laughed Magnus. He remained quiet for a few seconds, his eyes never leaving Alec’s. “I want to be a good friend, I want be a fashion designer, but above everything else I want to be happy.”

“That’s cute,” said Alec without thinking. Magnus’ eyes lit up. “And are you happy?”

A small smirk appeared on Magnus’ face. “Well, I can’t complain.”

Alec closed his eyes and took a deep breath.

“Do you want to know what my sister has been calling you the last couple days?” he said, cracking up.

“Surprise me.”

“Magnus _Babe_ .” Alec wasn’t expecting Magnus to laugh _at all_ , since it wasn’t even funny, but he had made Magnus Bane laugh, and oh, didn’t he have a wonderful laughter.

The chuckling ceased, Alec rested his forehead against Magnus’ and closed his eyes. He could hear the loud music pumping far away, and the noise of screams, but all of that seemed to be blocked by the sound of Magnus’ steady breath.

“I like you, Magnus Bane. I didn’t want to like you but I do,” he muttered, opening his eyes.

Alec wasn’t exactly sure why he had confessed that to Magnus, and he figured out he would regret it in the morning, but at that moment he was so close he was drowning in the smell of Magnus, which was a mix of strawberries and a cologne that _smelled_ expensive, and Alec wasn’t ready to think about how he would feel the next day.

“I may like you too. But just a little bit, don’t get too excited, huh?” Alec laughed again, and Magnus joined him.

That was the moment when Alec felt like everything clicked. Magnus, who had listened to him rambling for hours, didn’t think he was boring or dull. Magnus, who had taken him out on a date, wasn’t even upset at it being a total disaster. Maybe it was the sudden realization that Magnus seemed to be able to deal with him, which wasn’t easy, because, like Isabelle always said, Alec wasn’t an easy person. Or maybe it was the fact that he was drunker than he had ever been, but Alec was suddenly feeling very brave.

He leant forward and when he thought his lips were going to meet Magnus’, he found nothing but air. Alec opened his eyes and saw Magnus, looking at him with a conflicted look on his face. He was just a couple of inches away from Alec, and in any other situation it would have been uncomfortable to be that close to somebody, but in that moment Alec felt like they were suddenly miles away.

“Alec, I―,” Magnus started.

Alec panicked, because he was sure that what would probably follow was a speech where Magnus rejected him kindly, trying not to hurt his feelings. And he didn’t think he was ready to hear that.

“ _Don’t_ ,” he snapped.

Magnus opened his mouth, about to say something else, but then someone appeared behind his back. Jace and Clary approached them, their faces relieved.

“We couldn’t find you! Clary thought you’d be here, thank God,” said Jace. “Come on, get in the car, we’re going home.”

Clary was looking at Alec, who was staring at the ground with a grimace. Magnus, who was already standing, offered him a hand, but he ignored him and got up on his own. Clary and Jace exchanged a look, and Alec felt his cheeks get warm. They had probably seen Magnus pull away from his lame attempt to kiss him.

“Where’s Izzy?” asked Alec, once on his feet.

“She left with Simon,” answered Clary, her eyes flashing.

* * *

Simon had just enjoyed a 30 minute walk home with Isabelle and his heart was about to explode. He was positive he had never met anyone as smart and pure at heart as her, and he had known her for 5 days.

“You really didn’t have to walk me home, you know,” said Isabelle when they got to the sidewalk in front of her door.

“I wasn’t letting you come here on your own. Besides, my house is just two blocks away,” he said, sad that goodbye had come so soon.

Isabelle looked at the ground and smiled slightly. When she lifted her gaze again, she stared into Simon’s eyes.

“Why are you being so nice to me?” she asked him. “I ditched you for Meliorn. And when I realized he was a prick you came to pick up the pieces of my broken pride. Not everyone would do that, you know.”

Simon’s heart was beating fast because he was holding Isabelle’s hands, the girl looking at him like he was some precious gift, and he had to remind himself he needed to breathe because at the moment all he could think of was how bright Isabelle’s eyes looked.

“Because you’re the most wonderful girl I’ve ever met, and you don’t deserve to be treated like shit by that asshole. I like you, Isabelle,” he mumbled.

Her face lit up and her mouth spread into a big, pretty smile. Her hands moved from Simon’s hands to his face, and he surged forward and crashed her mouth against his.

Simon’s heart skipped a bit, and his hands found their way to Isabelle’s waist.

Isabelle’s lips moved passionately against his, making fireworks explode in his chest. Her hands burnt the skin on his face, and the tips of her long, raven hair tickled Simon’s bare forearm. He had never been kissed like that, with such passion. Isabelle kissed like she meant it, and she gave every single part of her to the kiss.

Simon tried to keep up with her, but he couldn’t help but feel he wasn’t good enough. Isabelle’s lips parted and Simon’s tongue pushed its way into her mouth, making her giggle. Her hands travelled to Simon’s hair, probably making a mess out of it, but he couldn’t care less because it was _Isabelle_.

When she pulled away, with a big smile on her face, Simon swore her dark eyes shone way brighter than any star ever could.

“Go home, Simon. And call me,” she gave him a peck on the mouth. Speechless, Simon started to make his way to his house, when Isabelle’s voice caught his attention again. “Oh, and Simon? Call me Izzy.”

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I KNOW THIS TOOK SO LONG AND I'M SO SORRY!  
> I think I'll try to update weekly on wednesdays, but I'm finishing my senior year so I may be late sometimes. Anyway, I won't leave this unfinished! I swear.  
> Also I had a lot of fun writing this chapter, I'm not so sure about some stuff but still... I hope you enjoy it tho, and you know kudos/comments/bookmarks are welcome. <3  
> Thanks for reading!


	5. IV

The following Monday Magnus was determined to break his agreement with Meliorn because he didn’t want to get paid for dating Alec anymore. After Alec had tried to kiss him the guilt had been killing him, especially because he _wanted_ to kiss him.

Two periods had gone by and he hadn’t seen Meliorn anywhere, and he just wanted to forget about the whole payment thing and stop feeling like the worst person ever.

“Hey, Magnus?” called a voice.

Magnus turned around, finding the responsible one for all of his recents headaches.

“Oh, it’s you,” he said, looking at Simon—he had finally learnt his name. “What’s up?”

“I want to thank you, for taking Alec out. Because Izzy and I are a thing now, you know.” Magnus nodded, because Clary had told him about Simon and Isabelle. “Now I need you to go on a date with Alec soon, you know? Because I want to go out with Iz. I’m not really sure if Meliorn’s going to pay, but—”

“Don’t worry about it,” he snapped. “I don’t want to get paid anymore. I guess prostitution is not my thing, after all.”

“Huh? But are you gonna keep going out with him, right?”, Simon asked, a hint of fear appearing on his eyes.

“Yes, Simon,” he said with a sigh. “Because I genuinely like him.” Simon stared at him as if he had just said the most stupid thing in the world, but didn’t make any comment. “Do you know where Meliorn is?”

Magnus had just asked because he wanted to end the conversation, but Simon _actually_ knew where Meliorn was, so Magnus followed his directions and headed to the men restroom. He found Meliorn in there, smoking next to sinks.

“Just the one I wanted to see,” said the boy, taking a drag. “I think our little agreement needs to come to an end, I am afraid.”

Magnus blinked slowly. “I was looking for you to tell you the same thing, but why’s that? I mean, you don’t like the Lightwood girl anymore?”

“Because,” he said, stubbing out his cigarette “Isabelle doesn’t want anything to do with me anymore, and I’m not paying you to date her brother so she can go out with that junior nerd she seems to like now, because I’m not an idiot.” Meliorn didn’t look angry or concerned in the slightest. “Why did you want to end it, anyway? Is the Lightwood boy such a pain in the ass?” he asked, raising an eyebrow.

“Piss off, Meliorn,” snapped Magnus. “I actually like Alec, I don’t want to get paid for dating someone that I like. And take your money back,” said Magnus, reaching for his wallet.

“Whatever, you can keep that, I don’t want it,” shrugged the boy, picking up his stuff and heading to the restroom door. “See you, loverboy.”

As soon as the door closed, Magnus heard another one be harshly opened, but this one was _inside_ of the room.

“What the hell, Magnus?!” Fuck, it was Jace. It was Jace and he had heard _everything_.

Jace, Alec’s best friend and adoptive brother, had to be the one out of all the people at their school that happened to be hiding in the bathroom at the moment. Magnus supposed that karma was already punishing him for lying to Alec.

“I _can_ explain but please don’t punch me,” Magnus managed to say quickly, stepping away from Jace.

He had never seen the golden boy so angry. His face was red, his eyes wide and a vein had appeared on his forehead. Magnus had honestly thought that Jace knew about the whole thing by now, especially since he was Clary’s boyfriend.

“You better have a good reason to explain why you’ve been fooling Alec into dating you just so that _asshole_ can date Isabelle,” he said in a low voice.

“About fooling Alec—I did it and I’m so sorry, alright? I just wanted to take him out a couple of times so Isabelle could date too, I never thought that something would happen. I never expected him to like me, or me to like him.”

“That doesn’t make you any less of an asshole,” snapped Jace. “You should have seen his face when he told us you had asked him out, he was  trying to hide it but he was so _happy_ and you were just pretending for a few bucks? Gross.”

“I know, I _know,_ but I wasn’t helping Meliorn.”

“Are you trying to deny what I’ve just heard?” The bell rang, and when Magnus tried to move to go to his classes, Jace grabbed his forearm. “You’re not leaving until you explain.”

And so he did. Magnus told Jace everything about his agreement with Clary and Simon. He also told him how he had actually ended up liking Alec, and how guilt had been killing him all weekend. He was feeling so relieved to be finally able to tell someone, he told him even about the almost kiss. They were already late for class, so they just decided to skip and sat in the hallway, because the restroom wasn’t the nicest place to have a you-better-not-hurt-my-brother chat, Magnus decided.

“That totally sounds like something Simon would do because he thinks he lives in a tv show, but Clary?” he still sounded surprised, but now he also looked hurt. “I just can’t believe any of you would play like that with Alec’s feelings. That’s cruel.”

“I just didn’t know there would be any feelings,” groaned Magnus. “Please, don’t tell him. I don’t want to fuck things up with him.”

“If I told him, he wouldn’t go on a date ever again because he’d be too afraid of this happening a second time.” The bell rang and Jace stood up, offering Magnus a hand. “The thing is you’ve already hurt him. I don’t think he handled you rejecting that kiss very well.”

* * *

Alec had never given much thought to what being heartbroken felt like, but he was positive it was something like this. He had spent the whole morning purposely avoiding Magnus, because every time he thought about the way he had pulled away his face got warm and his stomach tightened, and not in a nice way, but in an annoying, painful one.

He was making his way to the lunchroom when someone grabbed his shoulder, and suddenly Clary and Isabelle appeared.

“Have you seen Magnus?” asked Isabelle when they were sitting at their table, straightforward as always.

“I haven’t and I don’t want to,” replied Alec.

“Come on, I’m sure it didn’t go _that_ bad.”

“You were about to kiss when Jace and I arrived, what’s changed now?” Isabelle’s eyebrows rose when she heard Clary say that, because Alec hadn’t told her that when she had demanded Alec to tell her about every single thing that had happened, and _that_ seemed pretty important.

“Well, we didn’t kiss, so nothing happened.” Isabelle and Clary stared at him, remaining quiet. “Okay, I tried to kiss him and he pulled away, are you happy now?”.

“Ohh, big bro,” said Isabelle, holding Alec’s hands over the table. “I’m going to kick that idiot’s ass.”

Clary just frowned, a confused  look on her face that Alec didn’t understand. In that moment, the door flew open and Magnus and Jace walked in together. However, they drifted apart and Jace made his way to the table were they were sitting on as Magnus headed to meet Raphael.

As soon as Jace got to the table, he said “Alec, Izzy, go. Clary, you and I need to talk about something with Simon, don’t we?”

* * *

Alec and Izzy were eating their lunch in the empty library because Jace had decided to get all cryptic and none of them felt like fighting with him. They had been there for less than three minutes when the door opened and a very rushed Magnus Bane approached the table they were sitting at.

Alec was expecting a devious smile to appear on Izzy’s face, but instead of that his sister’s expression hardened and her hand flew to Alec’s forearm, squeezing it gently and making Alec feel grateful for her presence. Isabelle’s brown eyes met Alec’s, encouraging him to say something.

That’s probably what Alec loved the most about Izzy. She was a protector and would do anything to keep him safe, but, unlike Jace, who in his attempts to make everything easier for everybody always became the center of attention, Isabelle knew which wars were hers to fight.

“What are you doing here, Magnus?” Alec had intended to keep his tone neutral, but it came out tired. Alec had spent the whole weekend hungover, exhausted and utterly embarrassed, and even though he had done a good job hiding it so far, being right there with Magnus was completely different than being with Jace or Isabelle. When he saw Magnus the moment of his rejection replayed in his head over and over again and a knot formed in his stomach.

“I think we should talk,” replied Magnus softly, standing next to Alec’s table. The gentle tone of his voice making Alec blush. “In private,” he added, his gaze flying to Isabelle.

Isabelle sighed loudly and turned to look at Alec. “I’ll be around, alright?”

Alec nodded, watching his sister pick up her stuff and leave the room. Neither Alec nor Magnus said anything until she was out of the room, both staring at anything but each other.

“You’ve been avoiding me,” said Magnus finally. Alec let out a sharp breath, ready to answer, but then Magnus started talking again. “I’ve spoken to Jace and I figured out why.”

Alec didn’t say anything, but raised his gaze and looked at Magnus, who was staring into his eyes.

“Why didn’t you talk to me, Alec? Why didn’t you ask _why_?”

Magnus’ words angered Alec. He got up, feeling ready go flip the table over and punch a shelf.

“Why? Are you seriously asking why?” Alec laughed bitterly, all the thoughts he had been trying to push to the back of his mind for the last three days suddenly on the tip of his tongue, ready to be yelled. “After everything I’ve told you, I would expect you to know.  Why would you ask me out if you didn’t want to… to even kiss me? Why would you give me hope?”

Alec looked again at Magnus, knowing his angered expression had turned into a hurt one. He had intended to be angry at Magnus, he wanted to be harsh and wanted to yell at him, but deep down he knew he didn’t have real reasons to. Was he going to blame Magnus for not wanting to kiss him? Hell, the reason why it had been so hard to believe that Magnus wanted to go out with him in the first place was that not even Alec thought anyone would want to go out with him. So, he wasn’t angry, because that wasn’t the kind of thing that made Alec mad. Alec was upset, Alec was sad, and Alec was disappointed because in that moment, when Magnus and him were talking on the sidewalk, he had really started to believe that maybe there was a tiny possibility of them being _something_. It was so cliché, but in that moment he just felt something click, he felt everything was just right.

But maybe Magnus didn’t feel the same way.

“You were drunk,” replied Magnus. “You were very drunk, I wasn’t going to take advantage of that. Do you think I wouldn’t have loved to kiss you right there? It just didn’t feel right to do it when you were like that.”

Alec’s eyes widened, and he looked down at his feet. “Oh,” he said, always so eloquent. So that was it. After three days of torturing himself with thousands of reasons why someone like Magnus would never be with someone like him, the reason why Magnus had pulled away was so completely harmless, and, well, _decent_. Alec hadn’t thought about it, because Alec was sure he had fucked up somehow.

“I didn’t want you to do something you’d regret in the morning. Also, it was kind of selfish but I wanted you to remember the first time you kissed me,” Magnus continued. Alec was still staring at the floor, and suddenly a pair of shoes appeared right opposite to his. “I wanted it to be better than a messy kiss at a party that you wouldn’t remember clearly.”

“It was probably for the best,” Alec said, his hands fidgeting nervously because _oh my god Magnus was so close again_. “It would have been my first kiss.”

“Oh?” Magnus sounded amused, which made Alec raise his gaze to see a small smile on the boy’s lips. “That’s cute.”

“It really isn’t,” answered Alec, feeling himself blush and trying to avoid Magnus’ eyes. “It’s lame.”

Magnus’ hand caught Alec’s wrist, bringing them slightly closer, and Alec felt the need to look into his golden-green eyes.

“It’s not lame, darling. You can kiss whoever you want and whenever you want, don’t let anyone convince you otherwise.”

Magnus’ gaze was so intense that Alec thought he was going to melt, because it felt like he was _burning_. His skin itched all over his body and his mouth went dry. He wasn’t conscious of moving, but Magnus and him were getting closer and closer, and he was sure Magnus wasn’t the only one reducing the gap. Unable to stop himself, Alec licked his lips with anticipation, a quick motion that brought Magnus’ eyes to Alec’s mouth.

They were so close that Alec could have counted Magnus’ eyelashes, but he was too focused on the fact that he could feel Magnus’ breath against his own lips and the way Magnus smelled, a sweet mix of cologne and sandalwood that Alec found oddly endearing.

“You’ve got the prettiest eyes I’ve ever seen, Alexander,” whispered Magnus, his lips almost brushing Alec’s and sending chills down his spine.

Magnus’ free hand travelled to Alec’s cheek, cupping it softly while the other one intertwined its fingers with Alec’s.

Alec leaned down, feeling brave, and finally closed the space between Magnus and him, pressing his lips against Magnus’. He felt his lips tremble, and Alec felt embarrassed for a moment, until Magnus’ lips start moving against his.

The thing about kissing is that Alec had always been too afraid of it, of not knowing what to do. But at that exact moment, it seemed like his body had always been ready for Magnus’ mouth on his own, his lips moving against Magnus’ in a way that he didn’t know they could. Alec’s hand, that had been hanging awkwardly on the side of his chest, finds its way to Magnus’ hip, and Magnus _giggles_ against his lips.

Magnus bites his lower lip softly, and Alec gasps, parting his lips. Alec feels the warm feeling on his chest increase until it becomes like a fire is burning inside his ribs, like an explosion. Magnus’ hand makes its way from Alec’s cheek to the back of his neck, playing with the hair there, and Alec groans. Magnus’ tongue caresses Alec’s bottom lip softly, asking for permission, and Alec gives it because he’s never felt so _good_.

Alec knows this is an incredibly inappropriate thing to do in school grounds, but when Magnus’ tongue touches his he loses notion of where and when, and melts.

Magnus is the first one to pull away, resting his forehead against Alec’s and chuckling, and if Alec thinks that his laugh is one the prettiest sounds he’s ever heard he’s definitely not going to admit it.

He doesn’t feel awkward like that, looking at Magnus’ eyes without saying anything, both smiling like dumbasses, but he knows he has to look for Isabelle, so he slowly pulls away.

“I need to go,” he says, running a hand through his hair. “But we definitely should do this again,” he manages to stutter, aware of how ridiculous he sounds.

“What, making out?” asks Magnus, his smile growing wider, making Alec mirror him while he nods. “You’ll be hearing from me, Alec. There’s no way I’m letting you go,” getting closer again to cup Alec’s cup and give him a quick peck on the lips.

So maybe Alec’s grin doesn’t leave his lips when while he makes his way through the hallways, looking for Isabelle. And maybe when he finds his sister and she smiles knowingly at him, he talks excitedly about how amazing Magnus’ lips are, and how amazing his voice, and how amazing _he_ is. And maybe, just maybe, he can feel himself falling for this boy, but he doesn’t care because it feels just right.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As always beta'd by the lovely emma <3  
> I HOPED YOU GUYS ENJOYED THIS like I didn't plan to post it the exact same day Malec would happen on TV but hey fate is a big shipper after all  
> I HAD SO MUCH FUN WRITING THIS also I feel like I suck at writing kisses so I stressed a lot about it but I'm happy about how it turned out to be so I hope you liked reading it nearly as much as I enjoyed writing it yay  
> You know how much I love kudos and comments sooooo...  
> oh by the way this is gonna have 11 chapters (including the prologue) so we're almost halfway damnnn


	6. V

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> thanks to emylisis for betaing and thank you for not dropping this fic even though it takes me a thousand years to update <3

“Oh my god, Max, that’s not how you’re supposed to—” Alec said, trying to stop his brother from completely messing up the science project they had both been doing the last two weeks.

“No!” Max replied, still trying to place Saturn where Mars should be and making Alec want to tear his hair out. “It’s my project and I like how Saturn looks next to the Earth!”

Alec huffed, running a hand through his hair. Max was smart, yes, but he was nine. And because he was nine he had decided that the order in which the planets in the Solar System was not _good enough_ for his project, and that he wanted to be neighbours with Saturn’s inhabitants (because there was _no way_ a planet as cool as Saturn had no life in it, and who was NASA to question Max Lightwood?), so he had decided to mess everything up, and Alec was not having none of that shit because he had spent way too much time shaping and painting the tiny planets that were sprawled across the kitchen table, precious free time that he could have spent making out with his sort-of-boyfriend.

“Max,” he sighed, trying one more time to enlighten his little brother. “If you don’t represent the Solar System accurately you’re going to get an F, and you don’t want that, do you?” Max shook his head, pouting “You know that if you fail mom and dad will take your mangas away.”

Max's eyes widened and his mouth fell open.

“They can’t do that!” he said, suddenly sounding scared. “You and Iz and Jace got them for me, they can’t take what isn’t theirs. That’s not fair!”

Alec bit his tongue, because telling his nine year old brother that the world was rarely fair didn't seem like the most intelligent move ever, so he let out a low chuckle and patted Max’s head, which messed up his hair, which made Max give him the Death Glare.

“They can and they will, so don't give them a reason to do it.”

Max was sulking and frowning at his work, his arms crossed over his chest, complaining about how “the education system was killing his creativity,” and Alec wondered where he had heard that when the doorbell rang.

“I’ll go get it!” exclaimed the younger, his previous anger suddenly forgotten. Alec followed his brother, who had sprinted through the corridor and was already opening the front door.

To say that Alec was surprised to find Magnus standing at his doorstep would be an understatement.

“Oh! You’re Alec’s _friend_ ,” Max said, turning around to look at his brother.

Alec felt his face get warm when he heard Max’s words, because _dammit Max, you’re nine, you’re not supposed to be like that_. Magnus raised an eyebrow, clearly remembering the day he had come over to Alec’s, before that disastrous evening they attended Ragnor’s party, and all of Alec’s siblings had found them holding hands in Alec’s bedroom (and then teased Alec about it every single day since, but not like Alec was going to tell Magnus all of his younger siblings— including a _nine year old_ _—_ were making fun of him).

“Hey buddy,” replied Magnus, a goofy smile on his face. “Let me in?”

“Sure!” Max got away from the door to let Magnus in, and gestured to him to lower himself to his eye level.

Alec leaned against the wall, watching how Magnus squatted next to Max, who was whispering something in his ear. Maybe, at some point of his life, Alec would have found it weird that he was watching his younger brother and the guy he was going out with whispering to each other right in front of him, but after all the nonsense that had been going on in his life the last couple of weeks he decided to just roll with it.

When Max moved away from Magnus, there was a very serious look in his face that contrasted with the big grin on Magnus’. Alec sighed.

“Are you done with the secrets yet?” he asked, trying to look as unimpressed as possible.

“Don’t be needy,” said Max, his gaze still fixated in Magnus, who was still squatting next to him. He then offered Magnus a hand, “I’m Maxwell Joseph Lightwood.”

“Magnus Bane,” came Magnus’ reply, as he shook Max’s hand. He then let go of the younger and stood up again, making his way to Alec and pinching his cheeks. “No need to get all jealous, Alexander.”

Alec rolled his eyes, but a small grin appeared on his lips and he was sure that his cheeks were pink _again_. _The Magnus Bane Effect_ _is_ _devastating,_ he thought to himself. He had never been one to be social, but he definitely hadn’t gone around blushing every three minutes until this fashionable, glitter-loving boy entered his life.

Max entered the kitchen again, and when Magnus went to turn around to follow him Alec gently grabbed his wrist, stilling him. Magnus raised his eyes to meet his, and even though they weren’t even close Alec felt a warmth spread through his chest.

“Why did you come here?” he asked, confusion evident in his voice. He then realised it probably had sounded like he didn’t want Magnus to be there, so he quickly blurted, “Not that I don’t want you to be here, obviously, I just didn’t know—”

“I get it, darling,” Magnus said, a big grin spreading across his face. “I wanted to take you out on a proper date. Hopefully you won’t get drunk this time, huh?”

“Shut up,” Alec replied, a playful tone in his voice, as he leaned forward to give Magnus a quick peck. Almost three weeks had passed since the day they had kissed in the library, and although they had spent a good part of that time together, Alec suddenly realized they hadn’t gone out on a date yet. They usually just spent the afternoon together at Magnus’, sometimes at Alec’s when it was empty. “I don’t know if I’ll be able to, I’m on babysitting duty.”

“We’ll figure something out,” said Magnus, taking Alec’s hands in his and leading the way to the kitchen, where Max was waiting sitting on a stool.

“So, now that you’re done being gross, I want Magnus’ help since Alec has been proved to be useless,” explained Max enthusiastically.

“Sure, just tell me what you need help with,” replied Magnus, approaching Max and his disastrous project.

Again, Alec just stood there, watching Magnus and Max interacting. It felt nice, he realised. Ever since Isabelle had been born, Alec had always been the one to take care of his siblings and help them when they needed it. He had been the one to take care of everyone when their parents weren’t around, and even though there had been adults to take care of them when they were little, he still felt like he was the responsible one. It was his duty as the elder to make sure his family was alright, and although he liked it it could be overwhelming sometimes. Especially when it felt like he was the only one who cared, like right now. Isabelle and Jace probably didn’t even know about Max’s project and their parents cared more about their jobs, but Magnus, who hadn’t even know Max until today, was there. He was helping Max, and although it might seem like helping a fourth grader with a dumb science project was a stupid and small thing to do, Alec felt like a huge weight had been lifted up from his shoulders.

He liked this, he decided. He would have been grateful to have anyone help him with this small thing, but the fact that is was Magnus made him feel oddly happy, and he didn’t want it to stop.

Apparently, Magnus was a lot more convincing than Alec, because he was able to talk Max into respecting the way the planets were placed.

“Do you think you can do the rest on your own, buddy?” asked Alec to his brother.

Max crossed his arms over his chest, looking at Alec with his eyebrows raised.

“I could have done the whole thing on my own but you looked so hyped over it that I let you help.”

Magnus snorted and Alec ruffled his brother’s hair, making him protest.

“Yeah, whatever you say, little bro. I’ll tell Isabelle to look after you, alright?”

Fifteen minutes, after finding Isabelle and Simon in a way that made him wish he was blind, Alec was seated next to Magnus in the latter's car without a clue of what they were going to do. Usually, Alec wasn’t very fond of surprises. He was kind of a control freak, so not knowing what was going to happen made him feel a bit anxious, but this was different. He wouldn’t admit it out loud because he knew he’d be teased, but it was somehow exciting.

Alec couldn’t help but stare at Magnus while he drove the car, humming quietly to the music, the fingers of his right hand tapping on the console. It was a bit scary, the way his heart fluttered just at the sight of Magnus, but Alec couldn’t care less, because right in that moment Magnus looked stunning, the afternoon light making him glow, and everything felt just _right_.

“You might as well take a picture, babe,” he chuckled out, and Alec felt he was dying a little inside, because he was used to Magnus calling everyone _darling_ and _dear_ , but only he was _babe_ and for a reason that he didn’t know it felt like a triumph.

“Maybe I will,” he teased back, taking his phone out of his jeans pocket.

Magnus laughed again, and Alec snapped a picture, making sure Magnus heard the shutter, earning him a raised eyebrow. He looked at the picture and decided that he really liked it, so he should probably keep it.

“You know the only reason my hand is over the console instead of on the steering wheel is because I’m waiting for you to hold it, right?” asked Magnus, his eyes still focused on the road.

“Oh,” said Alec, suddenly feeling like blushing again. He had been starting to feel comfortable around Magnus, stuttering way less and behaving more like he did at home with his family, but sometimes he felt sort-of ashamed because he had never been in any kind of relationship, and even though Magnus was patient and understanding Alec wasn’t sure if he’d be able to keep up. So, when stuff like this happened he couldn’t help but go back to stage one over and over again, afraid he’d say or do something wrong.

He intertwined his fingers with Magnus’ and the boy squeezed his hand gently, almost reassuringly, and spared Alec a quick glance and an encouraging grin.

Alec was neither stupid nor oblivious, he knew there had been people Magnus had been with before him. He knew about Woolsey, and he was definitely aware of the relationship he had had with Camille when both of them were juniors and she was a senior that dramatically ended in a very public way with a very brokenhearted Magnus, who had seemed to lose his spark for some time afterwards. He was somehow scared that Magnus would realise the big mess that he actually was, and even though he knew he should probably tell him about how he felt it never felt like a good moment to do it.

He tried to ignore this thoughts, because maybe the moments prior to their second first date— because both of them refused to let that disastrous Friday be their first official date— wasn’t the best time to get all paranoid, so he pushed it to the back of his mind and focused on how warm Magnus’ palm was against his, running his thumb over the rings on the other’s fingers.

 

* * *

 

 

Magnus didn’t tell Alec where they were headed until they arrived, and when Alec saw the big sign in the parking lot his eyes widened in surprise.

“You brought me to an archery range?”

“I know it’s not the most typical first date place,” Magnus shrugged. “but I thought maybe you’d like to come. We can go anywhere else if you—”

“This is amazing,” Alec looked at Magnus, a big smile on his face and a weird feeling in his chest. He wasn’t used to it, to be taken care of like this. He could be wrong, but he suspected Magnus wasn’t too into archery, which would mean that he had done this for Alec, because he wanted to do something for him. It’s not like no one had ever done anything nice for him, he was Isabelle’s brother after all, but it didn’t feel the same when Magnus was the one behind those gestures.

Maybe it had to done something with the fact that for a long, long time, when he had first found out he was attracted to men and then when he came to terms with his feelings with Jace, he had thought that he would never have anyone to reciprocate his love. It wasn’t like he thought that he would always have that stupid crush with Jace, not at all. He wasn’t even sure if that had been a _real_ crush after all, because what he felt for Magnus felt different but also more natural, it felt more right.

What he felt for Jace, whatever it was, made him hurt, mostly because something inside him told him that if he wasn’t able to confess to the person he was the closest to in the world, how would he ever be able to tell anyone else? When he got over it— because he wasn’t dumb enough to think that he would be moping over Jace forever, especially since Clary had appeared in their lives— and got feelings for someone else, would it be like this again? How could he tell anyone else if he hadn’t even been able to tell _Jace_?

It felt surreal to have Magnus around now, and Alec had never felt this way in the eighteen years he had been alive. Whatever he had read in novels, or watched in tv or films, even what his siblings told him about their relationships, reality was way better.

And he wanted to keep it for as long as possible.

“Thank you so much, Magnus,” he said, trying to let the other boy know how grateful he was.

Magnus’ face lit up, and before he could hold it back, Alec’s face split into a big smile.

“You truly deserve it, Alexander,” said Magnus as he grabbed Alec’s hand.

Alec tightly gripped the other boy’s hand and cupped his cheek with his free hand, pulling him in for a slow kiss.

Magnus made a surprised noise in the back of his throat and laughed against Alec’s lips. He pulled away too soon, though, and Alec would be lying if he said he wasn’t a bit disappointed.

“Come on, dear, you need to teach me how to shoot.”

 

* * *

 

 

Isabelle loved her younger brother deeply, she really did. She would take a bullet for him, and protect him from every bad thing in the world if she could, because Max was so innocent and pure that he only deserved good in his life.

However, she hated babysitting. Especially when she had a boy she liked a lot at home. And especially if that boy was ignoring her in favour of talking about nerdy stuff with her younger brother.

That was why she was relieved when Jace and Clary arrived home, because that way she would have someone to talk to while Simon and Max played some stupid video game. It wasn’t fair, really. She was going to ruin Alec and Magnus’ next date together. She was even going to appear in ten years to spoil Max’s dates. Revenge is a dish better served cold, after all.

“Anyway, where is Alec?” asked Jace once Clary and him were settled in the sofa with Isabelle, Max and Simon sprawled on the carpet looking at the tv.

“Magnus came to pick him up early,” replied Isabelle, looking at the ceiling.

“Oh, yes!” said Max, eyes still fixed on the screen. “I met him today, he’s so cool! And Alec looks happy around him.”

“Well, you definitely gotta thank us for that,” said Simon, distractedly.

“Oh? And why’s that?” asked Isabelle curiously. If she hadn’t been so focused on the way Simon shrugged, she probably would have noticed Jace and Clary go stiff in the couch, looking at each other with alarm. “You set them up?”

“No, we paid Magnus to go out with Alec so you—”

“Shut up!” yelled Clary, her face bright red, at the same time a pillow coming from Jace crashed against Simon’s face

Isabelle’s eyes widened. Had she heard that correctly? _They_ _paid_ Magnus?

“You did _what_ ?” she asked, trying not to raise her voice. He was probably kidding, right? And Clary and Jace were acting weird because, well, they _were_ weird. It had nothing to do with the nonsense that had just come out of Simon’s mouth. Right?

“That sounds a bit like prostitution,” said Max, turning around with a confused look on his face.

“God, Max, go to your room until I tell you to come out, you’re too young to be talking about prostitution,” squeaked Jace.

Max looked around, confused, but obediently turned around and left the living room, probably because he had seen they way Isabelle was clenching her jaw, meaning she was around to explode, and nobody really liked to be around when Isabelle exploded.

“Explain. _Now_.” She wasn’t yelling. She was trying to keep it cool, because she wanted to give her friends a chance at giving her a perfectly reasonable explanation about what had just been said.

“I wasn’t involved in any of this,” blurted Jace out of the blue, and Isabelle could swear she heard Clary hiss _you’re such a coward, Jace Lightwood_ under her breath.

“We, uh…” Simon started, looking more embarrassed than Isabelle had ever seen him. “We may have talked Meliorn into paying Magnus to go out with Alec.”

“Who the fuck is ‘we?’ And what does Meliorn have to do with all of this?” she asked, losing her shit.

“Simon and me,” said Clary, sounding startled. “You… you couldn’t date until Alec dated, and Simon really wanted to go out with you, so we figured we needed someone to go out with him. So we convinced Meliorn to pay Magnus to date Alec, because, well, Meliorn thought _he_ was going to go out with you. And, uhm, everything kind of worked out just fine.”

Isabelle was seeing red. She wanted to punch a wall and scream, because _were her friends telling her they had lied to Alec and her behind their backs_ ? And were they implying that it was _just fine_?

“What do you mean ‘just fine?’” she yelled, standing up. “Alec thinks Magnus is into him, god, he’s developing feelings for him, and Magnus is doing it just because he’s getting paid! And the worst part is that it was the idea of you, his so-called friends, and you’re telling me that the reason is _me_? Because you wanted to date me?”

She laughed, bitterly. Jace got up and held her, trying to get her to calm down.

“Izzy, relax, Magnus isn’t getting paid anymore, he—”

“How are you okay with this?” she asked, looking at her brother. “He’s your best friend, your brother, how could you be okay with them bullshitting him like this?”

“Hey, Iz, calm down, okay?” Jace placed his hands gently on either side of her face, making her look at him. “I’m not okay with it, I just found out the other day. Remember when I entered the cafeteria with Magnus and asked Alec and you to leave?” Isabelle nodded, taking a sharp breath. “I had spoken to Magnus before, and then I talked to Simon and Clary. They know they were pieces of shit, the three of them, alright? And all of them are sorry for playing like that with Alec, especially Magnus. He told Meliorn to take his money back, because he doesn’t want to be paid anymore. He likes Alec, he genuinely does, he’s not going to hurt him. He’s not dumping him suddenly because Meliorn tells him to, okay? Alec is not getting hurt, Izzy. Not because of him.”

Isabelle felt like crying. She just couldn’t believe what she was hearing. She had trusted Clary, she was one of her best friends, and she had been starting to trust Simon too. Isabelle was starting to be really fond of the way Simon pinched his nose, and she found herself constantly thinking about his smile, but all of that had seemed to shatter when she heard this. Alec came first. Alec came before anybody else.

“It doesn’t make what they did any better,” she replied, keeping her voice low this time. She faced Clary. “You know Alec, you know that if he finds out he’ll be broken. How could you come up with something like that? And you,” and then she faced Simon, who looked terrified “Did you expect me to be all happy about you using my brother as a tool to date me? Did you think I was never going to find out? Alec means the world to me, I just…” Isabelle was rarely speechless, but she was just so confused. “I don’t think I can see you anymore.”

Simon’s face fell, and Isabelle felt her stomach twist because she really liked him, god. She did. But it just didn’t feel right to be with him, just like it didn’t feel right to see Clary right now. She needed to think.

“Izzy, come on, I’m sorry, I didn’t think…” he started but Isabelle shook her head and interrupted him.

“That was the problem, you guys weren’t thinking,” she turned around to leave, saying one more thing before leaving the room, “Although I’m not really sure about how I feel about them going out now, I don’t think we should tell Alec.”

Isabelle went to her room, the muffled voices of her friends now almost inaudible, when she heard the front door open.

“I’m home!” came Alec’s voice.

 _He sounds happy_ , Isabelle thought.

She groaned, covering himself with her blankets, and decided she didn’t want to think about anything at all, at least not until tomorrow.

 

* * *

 

_i just had a date with alec fucking lightwood_

_fml_

_i’m in love_

 

**_Ragnor_ **

_Am i supposed to care about this_

 

**_Catarina_ **

_omg_ _on_ _a_ _scale from 0 to 10_

_where 0 is ragnor’s party_

_and 10 your dates with camille_

_how good was it_

 

**_Raphael_ **

_Why are we talking about Camille?_

 

_same don’t mention her_

_and alec is like_

_way better than her_

_1000000000/10_

 

**_Ragnor_ **

_I don’t think i want to be here anymore_

 

**_Raphael_ **

_Your wish is my command_

 

_Raphael removed Ragnor from the conversation_

 

_thanks raph_

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> as always thank you for reading and feedback is always appreciated!  
> you can yell at me on [tumblr](http://liqhtwood.tumblr.com/) for being a lazy lil shit who doesn't update her fics lmao (shameless self promo)


	7. VI

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> beta'd by emma <3  
> (also i don't mean to spoil anything but i changed the rating so... yeah...)

When Alec had told Magnus about his sister and Simon splitting up Magnus couldn’t help but feel a little sad. After all, the junior was the reason he and Alec were at this undefined yet pleasant stage of their relationship.

He genuinely liked Simon, so he felt bad when he found out things had not worked out between him and Isabelle, but that was life. Alec didn’t know why, his sister hadn’t told him, and Magnus wasn’t going to confront Isabelle nor Simon, he was too afraid of Isabelle getting angry at him for asking and of Simon bursting into tears.

Things were good, Magnus thought. They were weird, and also a bit scary because he  had never fallen so hard for anybody in so little time, not even Camille, but Magnus could see the goodness in Alec, and he wasn’t afraid of that kind of heartbreak  happening this time ,  of feeling  like  he had  only  been  used by the other person.

(And if he had reasoned that maybe that was dangerously similar to the kind of heartbreak he could give Alec, he decided not to think about it and pushed those thoughts to the back of his mind.)

 

It was Monday and Magnus was  in  the cafeteria, trying to decide if he should eat a sandwich or a slice of pizza for lunch. He wasn’t exactly trying to figure out which of his options he  _ wanted _ to eat, because after four years in that school he knew the answer was none, both tasted  awful . He was  deciding  which one  would  feel less like a piece of plastic and more like actual food.

He had tried to skip lunch for a while, but after three days he had realized starvation wasn’t his cup of tea . So he had started to bring his own lunch,  but unfortunately he ended up forgetting it  about  twice a week. He had a lot to think about, and the turkey sandwich his mother left on the counter everyday wasn’t a priority .

“Hey, babe?” Magnus asked Alec, who was right beside him. Alec raised his gaze from the bowl of salad he was contemplating and looked at Magnus, curiosity on his face. “What do you think will give me slightly less terrible poisoning, a sandwich or pizza?”

Alec wrinkled his face, clearly disgusted. “Oh my god, Magnus, both are terrible, eat something else.” He vehemently shook his head. “Why don’t you  get the  salad? It’s actually good.”

“Salad is  _ never _ good, Alexander, I thought that every teenager in the world was aware of that. You’re like a ninety year old in the body of a  hot  high school senior.”

“Whatever,” said Alec , rolling his eyes  with  a fond smile . “Take the sandwich, I don’t trust that pizza.”

“’Kay,” he agreed and picked up a sandwich. He hummed, squeezing Alec’s forearm and guiding him to the table where Clary, Simon and Jace were.

“Where’s Isabelle?” asked Alec when they got there, sitting in the bench next to Simon.

“She’s with Aline Penhallow over there,” said Jace,  gesturing behind himself . Magnus  peeked  over the blonde’s shoulder, only to see Isabelle laughing with a group of girls.

“This is like a déjà vu of that time we attended Ragnor’s party!” Magnus exclaimed, making Jace snort. “Damn Simon, back at it with it again with the third wheeling.”

Clary covered  her  mouth with both her hands, nearly spitting what she was drinking on Simon’s face.

“Piss off, Magnus,” he said, throwing a chip on his direction. “You’re mean.”

Magnus laughed again and tried to bother him a bit more, but he didn’t seem in the mood . None of them seemed in the mood for anything lately, Magnus decided. Jace and Clary were weird, always whispering stuff  into each other’s ears and looking concerned about something, Simon looked and sounded like a truck had run him over, and Isabelle was avoiding everyone who weren’t her brothers, according to Clary. When Magnus had asked her why, she just shrugged and told him she didn’t know. It was so obvious  that  was a lie, but Magnus  hadn’t called her on it .  It probably wasn’t any of his business, after all.

H e and Alec had talked a bit about it , wondering  why everybody was acting so weirdly, and  neither  of them had a clue about  what the reason was . Alec said that when Isabelle was at home she acted like she usually did . She looked upset but at least she wasn’t mad or avoiding anyone, so Magnus assumed something had gone wrong with Simon and Clary had somehow got in the middle. Clary got involved in a lot of things she shouldn’t, after all.

Magnus was silently chewing on his― absolutely disgusting and inedible― sandwich when a slim figure approached their table.

“Hi,” said Meliorn, smiling brightly and  leaning on the table. Simon sent him a death stare. “May I talk with you for a minute, Magnus?”

Alec raised an eyebrow and looked at Magnus, who nearly  choked  on his food. What the hell  did  Meliorn  want  with him now? And  _ why _ would he talk to Magnus when Alec was right next to him?

“Sure,” replied Magnus, trying to sound as oblivious and careless as possible. He saw Clary gesturing something to Simon from the corner of his eye, and Jace, who was just opposite him, was visibly tense. He just  hoped  Alec  wouldn’t  realize that everyone was suddenly acting  suspicious . “What can I do for you, Meliorn?”

“I meant privately,” he  replied , raising his eyebrows.

A half of Magnus  was  relieved, because that’d mean there  was  no chance of Alec finding out something he shouldn’t find out. The other half of Magnus  was  angry, because he had made it clear he didn’t want to keep that stupid deal going― it  really  had been a dick move―, and he didn’t know what else Meliorn  could want of him.

“Why?” asked Alec, holding Magnus’ wrist.

Meliorn laughed and his eyebrows raised even higher, and Magnus spoke before he could say something remotely suspicious.

“It’s okay, Alexander.” He stood up and started making his way out of the cafeteria, followed closely by Meliorn. “Make it quick,” he said once they were out of there,  leaning  against the lockers.

“Isabelle has dumped that Simon boy,” announced Meliorn, a smug smile on his face. Magnus raised an eyebrow, unimpressed.

“If you  interrupted  my lunch just to gossip, make sure you tell me something I don’t know,”  was  his reply.

“Be patient,” stated Meliorn, rolling his eyes. “I want to get back with Isabelle, but she just doesn’t seem to be… interested.”

“I’m sorry, dear, unrequited love is an ugly feeling. Do you need me to hook you up with anybody? I’ve always been quite a cupid.”

“No, Magnus, I don’t need you to set me up with anybody. I want Isabelle.” 

Magnus tried not to  show how boring he found  the  conversation. If he wanted to hear someone whimper over how heartbroken they were over the Lightwood girl, he could have stayed at his table with the boy he was dating. 

“And you’re going to help me to get her back , ” Meliorn finished. 

“Maybe she isn’t interested after what happened at Ragnor’s party. Whatever it was.”

Magnus still didn’t know what had made Isabelle throw her drink in Meliorn’s face and abandon the party with Simon. Not that he really minded, but he was curious. Isabelle hadn’t told anyone, and by the way Meliorn’s expression hardened, Magnus figured he probably wouldn’t be, either. It was likely to be something embarrassing for him.

“Yeah, so I need you to make her be interested again. You two are close, right? Or at least you’re close to her brother.”

Magnus swallowed, not liking the way this conversation was heading.

“We’re not  _ that _ close,” he shrugged, thinking about how he  hadn’t  spoken to Isabelle for the past few days. “And we both know her well enough  to be aware that she isn’t an easy one to convince. If she has already made her mind up about you, I don’t think that even Alec will be able to change her thoughts.”

“Well, it’s not like you have a say in this, Bane,” he spat, his voice full  of  poison as he stepped closer. His calm façade was now gone, and he was staring at Magnus with a hardened gaze and clenched jaw. “You owe me.”

“How  exactly  do I owe you?” snapped Magnus, trying to keep his voice low so nobody  could  hear them. “We had a deal, we both played our parts, but now it’s over. I tried to give you your money back and you didn’t want it. Is this about that? You can have it, Meliorn, but I don’t owe you anything.”

“You’re going to talk marvels about me to your friends, Magnus. Like it or not.” Magnus couldn’t help to snort at the pathetic attempt of a thread Meliorn had just let out of his mouth. “You value  that  excuse of a relationship you have with the Lightwood boy, don’t you? How do you think he would feel if he found out the reason why it started was that I was paying you to go out with  him ? If Alec found out that he was just a  means  to an end and you are  nothing  more than a  greedy  liar?”

Magnus clenched his fists and put every little piece of his will  into  not throwing a punch  at  Meliorn’s face― not that he would initiate a fight that he was sure he had no  chance of winning , but still, all he wanted to do now was make Meliorn’s mocking smirk disappear .

He closed his eyes, trying to remember why he had thought that making a deal with Meliorn was a good idea. He had never expected to be scared of Alec finding out about it because he really hadn’t planned on _liking_ Alec. Everybody in the school knew that Meliorn was an expert at telling half-truths and using everyone for his own purposes, and Magnus blamed himself for thinking that he could be an exception. He had thought that Simon, Clary and him were being so intelligent, fooling him into thinking they were trying to help him get Isabelle. Now karma was being a bitch and had come to bite him in the ass.

“Don’t you dare tell Alec anything about it,” he hissed. Meliorn laughed, and the urge to start a fist fight was there again. “Don’t even think about it.”

“Well, you  could  tell him yourself, of course,” carried on Meliorn, ignoring Magnus. “I think he’d be slightly more pleased if he found out  from  his boyfriend  instead  of me. Who knows? Maybe he  wouldn’t  even care.” Magnus knew that Alec would care. “Are you going to risk it, Magnus?”

Magnus knew his judgement was clouded, that decisions shouldn’t be  made  in moments of anger or stress, but he didn’t have much of a choice, did he? From his point of view, he had two options. He could try to save whatever he had with Alec, or he could let it go.  Put  that way, it seemed easy. But what if saving it would  mean hiding the truth from him, building everything they could have on a lie? Would that mean that their relationship would also be a farce?  But he didn’t want to let go of Alec .

He also blamed himself for thinking that he could be smart enough to make things wor k  without Alec finding out. Why did he overestimate himself so much?

He  knew that the right thing to do would be  to  tell Alec the truth and try to make it up to him,  hoping  for the best. But  Magnus felt selfish and he didn’t want to lose what he had with Alec, he didn’t want to risk it. Maybe the part of his brain that had come to the conclusion that he needed to keep the lie going was the one that had decided to start it in the first place, the Bad Decision part, he decided.

He didn’t want to have anything to do with Meliorn anymore, and although he knew he had another choice he didn’t want to think about it. Now that he knew what  it  was to have Alec  in  his life, he didn’t want to go back.

“What do you want me to do?” he asked, the words burning his lips as they left his mouth.

Meliorn smirked. “Whatever you  think will work , Magnus. I just want Isabelle by the end of this week, got it? If Friday comes around and she’s still not interested, Alec will be a bit heartbroken. Deal?”

Magnus inhaled sharply, looking at the hand Meliorn was offering him. He looked him straight in the eye and ignored his gesture,  instead turning to make his way back to the lunchroom.

“Deal,” he said right before going back into the room.

As he made his way to the table, more and more doubts appeared in his mind. How the hell was he supposed to make Isabelle fall for Meliorn? Maybe he could ask her to go on a date with him as a favor, that would be enough, right? If things didn’t work out then it’d be Meliorn’s fault.

When he saw Simon, looking as awful as he had been the whole day, he couldn’t help but feel even worse. In the end, he was trying to get the girl who had his friend all heartbroken to go out with another guy.

Magnus didn’t like all  this  drama.

“What did he want?” asked Clary as soon as Magnus came back.  She  sounded worried, and Magnus kicked her under the table. The last thing he needed was Alec finding out everyone was getting worked up about Meliorn talking to Magnus. That would be both awkward  and  suspicious.

“Drugs,” lied Magnus, saying the first thing that came to his mind. “He wanted drugs.”

Alec snorted. “Do you sell drugs?” he asked  with disbelief .

“No!” exclaimed Magnus. “But Meliorn thinks I do, apparently.”

“Okay…”  Alec lowered his gaze, looking at his salad and trying to bring a leaf of lettuce to his mouth. “I really don’t want to know anything about it.”

Magnus felt horrible.

* * *

 

 

“I’m telling you,” laughed Alec, throwing his head back as he chuckled, his eyes squinting adorably. “I’ve never seen Jace so flustered about anything.”

Magnus laughed too, even if he didn’t care about Jace’s embarrassing stories he liked to listen to Alec telling them, because he looked happy and relaxed and laughed a lot, and Alec’s laugh was Magnus’ favorite sound.

Magnus rested his head against the car window, closing his eyes. Alec was driving Magnus home, because his car had broken down after Ragnor  had borrowed it― Magnus didn’t even ask  _ how _ , he just told Ragnor to get it fixed if he didn’t want to die . Ragnor had nodded, so Magnus assumed it had been his fault.

“We’re here,” said Alec, parking in front of Magnus’  house . He turned his head to look at Magnus, a fond smile on his mouth.

“Thanks for the ride,” he replied, grinning. “Do you want to stay for a while?”

Alec’s smile grew a little wider and Magnus felt a bubbly feeling on the pit of his stomach. He liked the way Alec’s smile was able to light up the whole room, no matter if it was his car, the school hallway , or a cave.

“Sure,” Alec said, running  a  hand through his hair. “Isabelle  can  take care of Max today.”

“Good.” Magnus leaned forward and pressed a quick peck to Alec’s lips, before undoing his seatbelt and getting out of the car.

Alec followed him quickly, curling his arms around Magnus’ waist and humming on his ear while he tried to unlock his front door.

“Feeling playful today, darling?” he said, turning around only to see Alec looking at him with a  _ smirk _ , and hell, where was cute, blushy Alec now? Since when did his awkward sort-of-boyfriend smirk like that, all sexy and handsome and  _ ugh _ .

“A little,” he said, nuzzling his nose behind Magnus’ ear. “Hurry up,  _ dear _ .”

Maybe, in another world where Alec wasn’t holding him close and Magnus couldn’t feel the other boy’s breath on his neck, he would have been amused at Alec impersonating him. He would have raised an eyebrow, maybe even snorted if he found it funny enough. But Magnus could feel Alec’s chest against his back, and his puffy breaths on the nape of his neck, and he didn’t feel like laughing. He opened the door, clumsily, almost dropping his keys in the process, and once the door was opened Alec and he rushed inside.

As soon as the door was  closed , Magnus was pinned against the wall and caged between Alec’s strong arms. He raised an eyebrow.

“Since when are you this forward?” he asked, a teasing smile on his lips as Alec leaned in.

Alec didn’t reply, he just captured Magnus’ lips with his again and  kissed the question away. It felt surreal, to have Alec like that against him. Magnus whimpered against Alec’s mouth and  he  deepened the kiss, making Magnus melt against the wall.

Magnus pushed Alec back gently and giggled when he saw the frown on his face. “Come here,” he said, grabbing his hand and guiding him towards his bedroom. It wasn’t an easy task, because Alec grunted and pushed Magnus against the corridor wall again, unable to wait until they got to Magnus’ bedroom, but Magnus just smiled against his lips and returned every single kiss and every single touch, because, damn, _it was Alec Lightwood_.

“Alexander, god, wait a― _what are you doing_ ,” he squeaked as Alec grabbed him from the back of his thighs and lifted him up effortlessly. Magnus wrapped his legs around Alec’s waist and tightened his arms around his neck, because he was so not ready for this. Someone should have told him that two weeks of― intense― making out would have been enough to turn awkward and shy virgin Alec Lightwood into a god of sensual foreplay and _maybe_ of sex too, Magnus didn’t know yet but he  might be about to find out.

Alec didn’t listen, and kissed and bit on the junction where Magnus’ shoulder met the base of his neck, making him squirm and moan. Alec suddenly looked up, his face flustered. Magnus wasn’t able to hold his laughter at that.

“Oh, come on, you’ve got me  pinned  me against a wall and are sucking my neck like a bloody vampire but you get all flustered when I moan?” Alec pouted. “Oh my god, Alexander.”

Alec grunted and muttered something Magnus didn’t quite catch, but he couldn’t care less and kissed Alec over and over again, who then started moving towards Magnus’ room again.

Alec dropped him gently on the bed and  crawled  on top of him, his thighs caging Magnus’ body.

“This needs to go,” gasped Magnus, getting away from Alec’s  kisses  with  difficulty  and tugging at  Alec’s black shirt .

Alec straightened and bit his lip, and his cheeks, already red because of the heat of the moment, darkened a bit more.

“Hey,” said Magnus, resting his upper body on one of his elbows and cupping Alec’s cheek with his other hand. “It’s okay if you don’t want to do this, or if you don’t want to go all the way, or whatever. I can wait.”

“No, no, I want to,” replied Alec, maybe a bit too quickly. “I just… I don’t know what I’m doing.”

He looked frustrated, looking at some point under Magnus’ chin, and Magnus leant up and gave him a peck.

“We’ll take it slowly, Alexander. I’ll guide you through it,” he said, trying to sound as encouraging as possible. “I promise sex  is  a lot less scary  than  what it  seems  like , but we’re not doing anything until you’re a hundred percent sure . ”

Alec nodded and leant  back  down  towards  Magnus, kissing him. They had never kissed like  this , Magnus thought. They had shared sloppy kisses, slow kisses , and short kisses, but they had never had the urge to breathe into each other’s mouths like they had in that moment. Taking control of the situation, Magnus got rid of Alec’s t-shirt and rolled them over, making Alec lay on his back and hovering over him. He had never seen Alec’s abs, and even though he could imagine they were  _ something _ by touching Alec’s stomach over his clothes, he wasn’t expecting  _ that _ . Magnus thought that he could probably wash his laundry on Alec’s torso.

Magnus made his way down Alec’s chest, kissing and sucking at his neck and collarbones and trying not to leave marks, because he didn’t know if Alec was okay with  that . He loved the way Alec squirmed and whimpered under his touch, the sounds and the arching of the other boy’s back making Magnus’ jeans seem awfully tighter than they  had  before.

“ Magnus ,” grunted Alec. “Clothes. Off.”

“That’s so eloquent,” mumbled Magnus against Alec’s neck, laughing. “I love it when you get all bossy.”

Alec let out  a startled noise and rolled his hips against Magnus’,  the friction making him moan.  _ This boy was going to be the death of me, _ he thought as his fingers clumsily tried to undo the buttons of his shirt.

Once the shirt was discarded on the floor, Magnus proceeded to kiss every single piece of skin on Alec’s chest and torso,  somehow  worshipping him. He felt kind of dizzy, because there was no way on earth that this boy,  half human and half angel , was sprawled under him like  this , a moaning , flustered mess.

When Magnus reached the waistband of Alec’s jeans he looked up  at  his face, only to find him looking down at him, resting on his elbows, biting his lower l ip and with need written all over his face.

He locked his gaze on Alec and slowly started to unbuckle his belt and jeans. Once those were on the floor, joining their shirts, he licked his lips, looking down at the tent in Alec’s briefs.

“God, you’re so beautiful like this, Alexander,” he said, pressing an open - mouthed kiss on the other boy’s jaw and earning himself a whimper that went straight to his cock. He then slipped  a hand down Alec’s briefs. “I’m going to make you feel good.”

Alec moaned again when Magnus’ hand curled around his cock, biting his lip. Magnus teased Alec just enough to make him whimper and burrow his face in the crook of his neck, drinking up every single noise that came out of the boy’s lips.

He  moved  away just a little bit, so he could kiss Alec again, but all he got was Alec dropping moans and pleas against his lips― not that he was complaining.

“Can I suck you off?” he asked, letting go of Alec’s cock. The other boy nodded vigorously, and Magnus kneeled in between his thighs.

He licked the underside of Alec’s cock, making him groan and arch against the mattress, and swiped his tongue around the head before finally wrapping his lips around it.

If Magnus weren’t the reason behind the unholy moan that left Alec’s lips, he probably would have been scandalized by it.  He looked up at Alec, who had his head thrown back and was biting his lips, his fists clenched around Magnus’ sheets.

Magnus hollowed his cheeks and dug his nails  into  the inside of Alec’s thighs, not hard enough to hurt but adding enough pressure to  make him shiver .

“Oh my god,” he groaned, burying one of his hands  in the spikes of Magnus’ hair.

Content with the way Alec squirmed and groaned under him, Magnus started to bob his head up and down, stroking Alec’s hipbone with his right hand. He held the base of Alec’s cock with his free hand and twisted his wrist, making Alec grunt.

“Magnus,” he whimpered, tugging softly at the hair on the back of Magnus’  head . “I’m gonna come soon.”

“Good,” replied Magnus before giving a long lick from the base of Alec’s cock to the tip. “Look at me, Alec.”

He locked his gaze into Alec’s and  increased the speed of his bobbing when the  sounds  coming out of Alec’s mouth were more frequent and high-pitched than before.  He could feel Alec’s cock hitting the back of his throat, and then Alec came with the most sensual moan Magnus had ever heard.

Magnus swallowed Alec’s load and  wiped  his lips with the back of his  hand .  He lay down on top of Alec and  reached up to brush the sweaty strands of Alec’s hair away from his forehead, his fingers lingering over his sharp cheekbones.

“How was it?” he asked, looking at Alec. His lips were swollen, probably from biting on them too hard, and heavy breaths escaped through them.

“I don’t think I can stand up right now,” he sighed, tilting his head to press a kiss against Magnus’ lips. “I don’t think I can even  _ think _ .”

“Well, you definitely can’t think  _ straight _ .”

Alec snorted and threw his head back against Magnus’ pillow, laughing.

“If you ever make a pun as bad as that one  again  I’m dumping you,” he said, gazing at Magnus with a fond look  in  his eyes.

Magnus was about to  provide  a very valid reason  for  why Alec shouldn’t even think about dumping him, but then the annoying ringtone of a phone interrupted him.

Alec groaned and picked his  phone  from the floor, bringing it to his ear.

“Hi, mom,” he said when he picked him up. Magnus couldn’t exactly hear what Maryse was telling her son, but she didn’t sound particularly happy, and the way Alec’s face  crisped  showed he was getting pissed. “Isabelle and Jace are there, isn’t that enough?” He stayed silent again. “Fine, I’ll be there in ten,” he hung up.

Magnus sat  up  straight, pointing an accusatory finger at Alec.

“You’re not going to give me blue balls after I give you the first blowjob of your life!” he squeaked.

Alec sat up  as well , his brows furrowed. “I don’t have a choice,” he groaned, and by his tone Magnus knew he was genuinely sorry. “I’ll make it up to you.” He then kissed Magnus slow and deep, and Magnus felt his stomach twist.

Magnus sighed as Alec started to get dressed, and walked him to the door, shirtless and with a tent on his jeans. When they got to the front door, Magnus twisted his arms around Alec’s neck again, only to mumble against his lips.

“You owe me an orgasm, Alec Lightwood.”

  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'M SO SORRY IF THIS IS AWKWARD i had never written smut this is a whole new world wooow  
> thank you for taking the rime to read and feedback is welcome and appreciated!  
> i'm on [tumblr](http://liqhtwood.tumblr.com/) if you want to yell at me <3


	8. VII

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> HEY ENJOLMAO HERE i changed my user now i look serious  
> i'm sorry this took so long but i've been so busy with school and irl stuff  
> on the bright side i graduated last friday so congrats to me yay  
> as always beta'd by the lovely emma <3

Isabelle hated taking the bus back home. It didn’t happen frequently, now that both Jace and Alec had their licenses and a very functional car, but they had had the brilliant idea to go grocery shopping right after school, and there was no way Isabelle would go with them. It wasn’t her turn this week, why would  she ?

She was on the bus, which was mostly filled with freshmen and some sophomores from her class that hadn’t gotten their licenses yet or didn’t have a car, and the lack of a substantial conversation to maintain was starting to get on her nerves. She really hated taking the bus.

“Hey, Izzy?” more asked than called a voice behind her back.

She turned around, recognizing the soft voice and the hesitant touch on her shoulder behind seeing Simon behind her, sitting also alone.

“What happened to your van?” she asked, because last time she checked Simon didn’t take the bus either.

“I had some trouble with the battery,” Simon shrugged. “What happened to your brothers?”

“Grocery shopping,” Isabelle just says, making Simon nod.

They stared at each other for a moment, Isabelle’s neck twisted in a weird way, before Simon asked “Can I sit beside you?”

“Oh, yeah, sure,” replied Isabelle, maybe a little too quickly.

Simon smiles briefly and slips next to Isabelle. “How have you been?” he asks. “It’s been a while since I last saw you. Not that I don’t see you every day at school, but you know what I mean.”

“I know what you mean,” she said, smiling tiredly. She didn’t know why, but being around Simon made her tired. Maybe she was tired of avoiding him. Maybe she was tired of missing him. “I’ve been good, I guess. You?”

“I’m good, too,” he sighed. “I’m still sorry, you know.” Simon’s hand rested awkwardly over his thigh, and Isabelle suddenly had the urge to hold it on  her  own.

“I know you are,” comes her reply. “I’m not mad anymore,” she adds. “I just couldn’t believe you’d  do  something like that to Alec. You, Clary, Meliorn, Magnus, whatever.”

“It was a dick move,” admitted Simon, lowering his gaze to look at his knees. “But at least he seems happy with Magnus now, doesn’t he?”

Isabelle sighs. “I guess he does,” she ended up saying. Her knee kept bumping against Simon’s, sending chills down her spine, and she bit her lip to hide the small smile growing on her lips.

They spent the rest of the ride chatting like that, and Isabelle couldn’t help but to feel a little  bit  guilty when she finally got home. Simon hadn’t been honest, and it’d probably end up hurting Alec, but Isabelle missed him. She knew she was being selfish, because she had promised herself once that family would always came before any other stuff, but Simon made her feel good, and special, and maybe even loved, not just  _ liked _ .

So maybe she was a little selfish, but she couldn’t bring herself to care.

 

* * *

 

 

Magnus had never been one to get nervous or anxious. He had always been confident and , as he liked to describe himself,  _ pretty chill _ . He was, however, about to break a sweat as he stood on the Lightwood’s front door, trying to find the nerve to knock the door.

He wasn’t there to visit Alec, though. Besides, he wouldn’t get nervous about visiting him. He was there to visit the only person in the whole school who got anywhere near to  intimidating  him,  who wasn’t other than Isabelle Lightwood.

Deciding that he had had enough of being a whiny, scared baby, Magnus told himself that if Isabelle was a queen, he was undoubtedly the king, so he could face her. Even if it meant losing his dignity. So he took a deep breath and knocked on the door, because even if the Lightwoods had a perfectly functional doorbell, knocking was way more dramatic and Magnus was feeling pretty dramatic at the moment. He just  prayed that Isabelle would hear it.

He waited for what seemed like the longest twenty seconds , and was about to give up and press his finger against the doorbell, when the door flew open and he found himself looking straight into Isabelle’s  eyes.

“Hey!” he chirped cheerfully, because even if she was avoiding all of them he kind of missed her.

“Alec is not here,” she said, her voice cold. “He’s out with Jace.”

“I know,” replied Magnus, trying not to keep his exasperation away from his voice. “I was actually looking for you.”

Isabelle raised his eyebrows and stared at him, expectantly but not moving away from the door. Magnus wasn’t giving up.

“Could I come in?” he asked, flashing the girl a bright smile.

“Yeah, sure,” she said, but the expression of her face said otherwise. She stepped away from the door, allowing Magnus to come in, who closed the door softly. “Just make it quick.”

Magnus sighed, because he still wasn’t so sure how to approach this situation, but he had to do it, so he might as well be direct. “I don’t mean to get into your business, or personal life, or whatever,” he started, making Isabelle frown in confusion. “But I think that since things with Simon didn’t work out, maybe you should think about giving Meliorn another chance.”

The corner of Isabelle’s mouth twitched. Maybe she wasn’t fully over Simon yet, Magnus thought. He should have been more careful, but he had imagined and since she had been the one breaking Simon’s heart and not the other way around, she wouldn’t be particularly affected. She seemed just fine in school, still laughing and happy. Just with another people.

“Oh, really?” she asked, a devilish and bitter grin on her mouth that Magnus didn’t quite understand. “Why is that so?”

“Well,” Magnus started, trying―and failing― to find a good reason why Isabelle should give Meliorn another chance. “He’s… charming. I’ve been hanging a bit with him recently and he seems nice,” he lied. “Plus, he’s hot.”

“He’s nice?” Isabelle chuckled bitterly as the words left her mouth. “What’s the nicest thing about him? The amount of money he paid you to date my brother?”

Magnus’ mouth fell open, partly because that wasn’t  _ at all _ what he was expecting to hear and partly because he had never heard Isabelle’s voice filled with so much venom. He tried to compose himself, but he found nothing intelligent to say. Did Alec’s whole family know about his deal with Meliorn? Panic swirled in Magnus’ chest, because, what if Alec knew too? Maybe Jace had told them and that’s why Isabelle knew it.

“How do you know about that?” he ended up saying, unable to find anything better to say. He honestly was tired of looking for excuses and justifications, because he knew there weren’t. He knew he had fucked up the moment he had accepted the deal, and he also knew that he should have told Alec before the snowball kept getting bigger and bigger, just like it was happening right now. First it had been Jace, now Isabelle. Maybe Max would find out right after and threaten to kick Magnus’ ass, too.

“Simon.”

“ _ He _ told you?” asked Magnus, disbelief on his face. Because, honestly, if it had been Jace he would have been okay with it. He had promised not to tell, but Magnus would understand if he decided to keep loyalty to his brother and everything, but  _ Simon _ ? The one who had convinced him to do it? The one who had had the idea, in the first place?

“He didn’t exactly mean to,” said Isabelle, her voice sharp as a knife. “He already told me none of you intended to hurt Alec’s feeling with your stupid plan, and that you already stopped your deal with Meliorn, but honestly? I couldn’t care less about what your original intentions were. You lied to him.”

“I know it wasn’t okay, but now I―”

“Do you expect him not to find out, Magnus?” Isabelle asked, her eyes piercing Magnus skull. “Alec is smart, and I can assure you that when he figures it out he won’t be okay with it. I don’t think he’ll be  _ okay _ at all.”

Magnus stomach twisted with guilt, because he already knew. Jace had told him that they in the hallway, and after spending time with Alec he had learnt about the insecure boy who existed behind the cold face he showed to the world.

It wasn’t nice, to know he could hurt Alec like that. But he didn’t think that Alec would be a nice, soft person. He thought he was a jackass, an arrogant bighead who though he was too good for everybody else. How could he know it was the other way around?

And he knew that it wasn’t bad just because Alec was a good person. Hell, even if he was an ass it’d still be a shitty thing to do, but the fact that Alec was a little too kind for his own good didn’t help at all to make Magnus feel less guilty about his actions.

What the hell was he thinking when he agreed to that sort of thing? Ugh.

“I just―,” he choked, unable to confront Isabelle. It was overwhelming, to be told that his actions could hurt Alec that much. “I just want to forget about it. I regret it, and I’m sorry, but I don’t want to think about it.”

He knew he sounded immature, like a kid running away from his responsibilities, but it was the truth. There was no way he would have been able to confront Alec about it, too afraid of losing what they had, whatever it was, to be honest with him.

“Then why are you doing this?” asked Isabelle, a deep frown on her face. “Why are you asking me to date Meliorn again? Is he paying you?”

“No,” Magnus shook his head, his gaze fixed on the way Isabelle’s hands rested on her hips. “He asked me to convince you to go out with him again. He told me that if I didn’t he would tell Alec.”

Isabelle gasped and Magnus raised his eyes, confused, only to see Isabelle looking somewhere behind his back, in the kitchen’s direction. He turned around, only to find Alec with a confused look on his face.

“Tell me what?” he said, frowning.

“I’m going to leave now,” Isabelle said, making her way up the stairs. She threw a look on Magnus’ direction that seemed to say  _ you can’t keep running away forever _ . It wasn’t mean, or anything. It was actually compassionate, as if she knew that bad things were about to happen and fell sorry for Magnus. He couldn’t help to feel a little sorry for himself, too.

Magnus stood there, looking at his maybe-boyfriend, thinking about what his options were. He could finally come clean, or he could tell another little white lie, that added to the ones he had already told would become a big mess, and Magnus was tired of lying, tired of pretending that he didn’t go to bud with guilt burning him alive.

“How much did you hear?” asked Magnus, finally giving in.

“Long enough to know Meliorn is threatening to tell me something you don’t want me to know,” replied Alec, his voice low and his eyes on the floor. “Also, I heard that he’s paying you for something.” Another stop. “Do you really sell him drugs?”

“What?” he asked, shocked that Alec still was thinking about  _ that _ . They had already gone through the dealing thing. “No, Alec, I don’t sell him drugs.”

“Then what is it? What’s so bad you don’t want me to know about it?”

Magnus swallowed the knot on his throat and took a step closer to Alec. There wasn’t an easy way to tell Alec the truth, so he figured it’d be better to make it quick, like a band aid.

“When I first asked you out I had a deal with Meliorn,” he said, playing with the ring he was wearing on his left thumb. He wasn’t sure if Alec was looking at him, because he refused to look at his face. Magnus had never been a coward, but he didn’t want to see Alec’s face fall with disappointment once he knew. “Simon wanted date Isabelle, so he convinced Meliorn to pay me to go out with you, so both Simon and Meliorn could go out with her. It’s not like Simon wanted Meliorn to go out with her, but he needed someone to pay and he couldn’t waste his money like that. And well, Meliorn didn’t know at the moment that Simon wanted to go out with Isabelle, but―” He stopped mid-sentence, realizing he was rambling. “But yeah. That’s why I asked you out. I was paid to go out with you.”

Magnus could hear Alec gasp, still not looking at him. “Are you talking about the party?” he asked, hurt clear on his voice.

Magnus nodded. “I stopped it after that night. I liked being with you, both that day when I came here and we talked, and then at the party. I realized I genuinely liked you, and told Meliorn I didn’t want to keep the agreement going anymore, but then he came over at lunch that day and said that if I didn’t get Isabelle and him together he would tell you, and I―” Magnus took a deep breath. He then raised his eyes, to look at Alec, who returned his gaze with disbelief on his eyes. “That’s why I came here.”

“You asked me out because Meliorn was paying you?” he asked, his voice words slow and calculated.

“It sounds so bad if you put it that way, but―”

“But it is the truth, right? If it wasn’t for Simon, or Meliorn, or whatever, you wouldn’t have asked me out. Because you didn’t have any interest in me.”

“I didn’t back then, I thought you were an asshole. We’ve been in the same class forever and you’ve never even spoken to me, hell, I think you only ever spoke to Lydia, and I thought you were as snob. But I do now, Alexander. Now I know you way better than that. I’m so sorry.”

Alec had his jaw clenched, and Magnus was sure he was biting the insides of his cheeks and knew that if he looked down at his fists he would find his knuckles white. There weren’t tears on Alec’s eyes, but Magnus knew better. He had learned to read Alec over the past few weeks, and even if there was a lot he didn’t know yet about him, he could recognize this. It wasn’t an emotion he had experienced before on Alec, this mixture of anger, hurt, and maybe disappointment. He decided to take note of this, even though he was not sure it would be worth it. He doubted Alec would want to know anything about him anymore. At least, he wouldn’t want to, if he were on his shoes.

“Get out.” It was more a grunt that anything, but it was sharp and it hurt, even if Magnus know that it wasn’t Alec’s intention.

Alec didn’t want to hurt people, no matter how angry or disappointed he was. Alec was good, and Magnus wasn’t. Magnus was a liar and he didn’t deserve to have Alec. Maybe this whole mess was karma, Magnus thought. A punishment for being so insensitive regarding Alec’s feelings.

“I’ll understand if you don’t want to see me ever again, but―”

“You’re right, I don’t want to.”

“―but I really think you’re one of the most amazing people I’ve ever met and I’m so thankful you gave me a chance to get to know you.”

“That doesn’t change anything,” shouted Alec, losing his temper. “That doesn’t change the fact that you lied to me. Everything I thought we had was built over a lie.”

“Alec, I―”

“Go away, Magnus!” He opened the door and looked at Magnus, his gaze burning on Magnus’ eyes.

“I’m so sorry,” he said, getting of the house. He isn’t sure if Alec heard him, and he knew that apologizing wouldn’t make this better, but he didn’t know what else he could say.

He had fucked up. He had played with the feelings of one of the most noble and pure people he had ever met. He had lied to him and broken his heart for a few bucks that he didn’t even  _ need _ . Magnus wanted to solve it, wanted to make things better and be able to hold Alec  in  his arms again, to help him when his responsibilities became too much and the burden over his shoulders was too heavy.

The door slammed  in his face, and he stood there for a few seconds before turning around to find Jace, grocery bags on one of his hands and car keys on the other.

“So I guess hell broke loose?” he asked. Magnus just nodded. Jace sighed. Life went on.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i'm so sorry not only because bad thins are happening but also because this is short and it took a long time  
> yell at me on [tumblr](http://liqhtwood.tumblr.com/) because i truly deserve it today


End file.
